Heartless New World
by JCW18
Summary: Welcome to the Chernobyl Institute of Science and Mathematics! 18 Perfects have been exclusively selected to help change the world - no matter the cost. Here, in this underground Garden of Eden, a lack of morals and disregard for ethics is very much welcome! (Official spin off of Crit Fail's Legacy of Hope series) (18/18 accepted) (Cancelled)
1. Prologue: Welcome to the Institute Act 1

**November 3rd, 2017 **

**Chernobyl, Ukraine**

**The Chernobyl Institute - Director's Office**

"Let me first start off by saying, I am truly sorry for your loss, Mrs. Tanaka. Akiya was a brilliant man, and he will be missed. Rest assured, what we will end up accomplishing here, shall make all of our suffering be worth it."

Fuka Tanaka's red eyes stared up at the man with distaste. Her short, curly blue hair came no further down than her ears, and she pushed up the thick, black rimmed glasses on her face. She wore a black tank top and long black jeans, however a white lab coat conservatively covered the rest of her body up. She sighed, narrowing her eyes at the man before her.

"Thank you, Seriozha. I feel better already!" Fuka mocked dryly. "Spare me your false pity. I'm here for my own purposes, just remember that. I care little for your personal agenda." She spat, folding her arms.

The man in question was Seriozha Raymond-Reddington, the founder and first director of the Institute. He was a sharply dressed, clean shaven green haired gentlemen in his early 50s. His attire consisted of a white collared dress shirt with a green tie, and a black suit with matching black dress pants.

Seriozha chuckled to Fuka's brash response, a small smirk creeping up on his face. "And that is why, my dear, you will fit in perfectly here." He stood up from his desk, walking over to a nearby cabinet, pulling out an ID badge and a small tablet. "I believe you'll be needing these, as all of your future colleagues will. This badge gives you administrative access to every single lab within the Institute, so take care not to lose it. And this small nifty device right here, is a state-of-the art laptop and tablet hybrid." The green haired director told her proudly, unfolding it. "Do not let its size deceive you, my dear. It has a processing power comparable to even the most capable military supercomputers, without having to sacrifice convenience. It shall be more than enough to handle your every need. After much deliberation, we decided to call it-"

"-The Genesis Pad, and I was set to unveil it to the public within the end of the year. Sadly, this blasted tragedy changed that." Cut in a commanding, yet old and weary voice. Seriozha and Fuka both looked up to see a man far into his late 70s, and in very questionable health. His pale blue eyes studied the both of them with a hint of knowing, as if he could see right through them. His short, stringy grey and white hair matched his long beard, and his wrinkled face slouched over in a similar position as the man himself, forcing him to lean on an ornate, wooden cane. His clothing consisted of simple khaki pants and a white shirt, with a long, white lab coat over it, emblazoned with the Institute's logo, similar to Fuka's own. The nametag on the coat read "Professor Idabashi."

"Satoru, it is good to see you my friend!" Seriozha laughed good naturedly, approaching the older man and giving him a firm handshake. "You look far older than last year. Did you enjoy your tour of the facility?"

Satoru Idabashi chuckled, giving a small 'tap, tap' on the floor with his cane. "I confess, this tragedy has worn me down. Between the collapse of most of civilization, and the continued pestering I get from people such as the Towa Group, I'm at my wits end. A vacation in an underground bunker is just what I need!" He joked, looking over to the silent blue haired girl. "Ah, you must be Mrs. Fuka Tanaka, the former Ultimate Virologist. I look forward to working with you." When she simply narrowed her eyes, Satoru sighed. "Forgive me for sounding blunt, but why the sour attitude? This is an opportunity for a fresh start!"

The Perfect Virologist snorted. "Apologies, but I'm finding enthusiasm bit hard to muster at the moment. My husband is dead, my son is God only knows where, and my nephew Gundham is-"

"-safe within the ironclad walls of Hope's Peak, along with my dear Keebo. Which, may I remind you, is most likely one of the safest places to be right now on this planet." Professor Idabashi countered sternly yet gently.

"And my own daughter is safe at Hope Hills Preparatory Academy's bunker, that has been set up by the American Military." Seriozha added in, having silently observed the two. "We've all had to make sacrifices during these trying times, Mrs. Tanaka. But they're all safe, I assure you."

The old grey haired professor nodded in agreement. "Indeed. May I also remind you that most talent schools across the globe have converted their academy grounds into safe havens. They are all quite secure."

Despite their constant reassurances, the blue haired Perfect was still clearly unconvinced. "But on the other hand, they're all sitting ducks for these wretched despairs. But I digress, it is quite clear I'm wasting my breath with you two," Fuka sighed, clipping her new ID badge to her lab coat, and tucking her tablet under her arm. "Now, if you gentlemen will excuse me, I'll be heading to my lab, so I may begin my work in peace, before my new colleagues show up in the coming days." She informed them, spitting out the word "colleagues" as if it left a sour taste in her mouth.

The two older men silently watched the Perfect Virologist walk out, not uttering a word.

Eventually, Satoru broke the silence, the old man sighing deeply. "I'm sure I don't have to tell you this my friend, but I would keep an eye on her. Her mind has taken quite a hit with the death of Akiya, may he rest in peace. She may be dangerously unstable."

The green haired director shot Professor Idabashi an icy smile that unsettled him. "Which is why I will do nothing of the sort. In her scarred state, she'll be fully dedicated to her work, and I have no doubt she'll come up with something truly amazing! After all, that is what this place is all about. Casting aside petty rules and mentalities such as laws, regulations, and morals. They do nothing but hinder true progress." Seriozha proclaimed, walking over to his desk and pulling out several files. "Which brings me to our next order of business. While the death of Mr. Tanaka is a shame, it has opened up several new possibilities."

"Ah, yes. There is the pragmatic man I have gotten to know over the years." Professor Idabashi joked, abit nervously. "I take it you have already been eyeing up several potential replacements for his now vacant position here?"

"Indeed. You know me so well." He responded, ushering the old professor through a fancy, automatic glass door. Professor Idabashi blinked, his eyes adjusting to the sudden sunlight he was hit with.

They were now standing out on the director's balcony overlooking the central courtyard, the artificial sky and sun looming above them. Satoru couldn't help but smile at how well made and beautiful the Institute was. The circular central courtyard below housed a beautiful and expansive garden, birds chirping and flying between the many different species of trees, and the serene sound of a large waterfall emptying out into the winding river. All around the massive garden, a circle of glass and marble laboratories and towering apartments plus facilities loomed.

Yes, despite being located underground below one of the most radioactive places on earth, the Chernobyl Institute was truly the new Garden of Eden on earth.

Taking a seat across from Seriozha, who had brought out a tea set along with his files, Professor Idabashi gave a small smile. "Should I even ask how much it cost you to construct this place?"

Seriozha's smirk widened. "You should know me by now, my friend. The cost of my expenditures never bothers me." He poured the two both a cup of tea, gently offering one of the cups to Satoru, who accepted it graciously. "But, if you must know… this is what you get for roughly $17.6 Billion USD."

The elderly professor whistled, shaking his head, however he could not say he wasn't surprised. Seriozha Raymond-Reddington had always a man who got what he wanted, no matter what. A multibillionaire real estate tycoon from Russia, he single handedly held a firm grip on the real estate markets in every developed country on the planet. His brutal tactics and pragmaticism made him feared the whole world over. About a decade ago, however, Seriozha had decided that the money and power wasn't enough for him; he wanted to change the world, no matter the cost. Which of course, led him not only to Hope's Peak Academy and its Board of Trustees, but Jibo Momota as well. While the two got along well enough in the beginning, discussing their ideas and morally questionable dreams for the future, the two idealists quickly began to butt heads, with Jibo and his brother wanting to focus on talents and individuals, while Seriozha wanted to focus more on the world as a whole and its evolution. This began to lead to an internal squabble, with Hope's Peak's board of Trustees breaking off and choosing sides, with Idabashi himself favoring the brash Russian's philosophy more. Eventually, Jibo Momota and a few other scientists managed to have a breakthrough with the highly alarming Kamukura Project, leading to the Board electing to side with the Momota clan.

This was the first time in Seriozha's life he had not gotten what he wanted.

The fury he unleashed upon the board was astounding. The Real Estate Tycoon had walked away swearing revenge, and almost immediately began hatching his next plan, one that took almost half a decade to complete.

Which led them to where they were now.

"So, with Akiya Tanaka dead, we're back down to 17 Perfect's. Meaning we're one short." Seriozha piped up, snapping Professor Idabashi out of his thoughts. "I have several good candidates lined up, however… one sticks out more than the others."

"Oh?" Satoru inquired curiously, taking a sip of his tea.

The green haired director smiled, opening one of the files and sliding it towards the old professor. "Here she is, Miranda Bailey."

Satoru Idabashi sat his cup down, his brow furrowing in thought. "Now why does that name sound familiar…?" His eyes widened in recognition. "Wait, Miranda Bailey? The former Ultimate Geneticist who began to revolutionize how we looked at cellular composition? THAT Miranda Bailey?!"

Seriozha gave him a knowing smirk. "The one and only."

The old professor's mouth gaped, as he began reading the file his friend had built on the woman, eventually frowning. "It says here she's currently employed under Jibo Momota."

The green haired director didn't even skip a beat, his smile never faltering. "Ah, yes she is. However, I have it on good authority that she is becoming increasingly distraught about what that worm Momota has been up to. Which again, provides us with a unique opportunity. If I can convince her to defect, not only will we have one of the most brilliant scientific minds on our side, she may also be able to give us insight on some of that bastard's plans and projects, giving us the upper hand." Seeing Professor Idabashi about to open his mouth, Seriozha waved his hand dismissively. "And before you ask, yes, I'm quite sure I can convince her to defect. It may take some time, but I'm confident in my abilities of persuasion."

Satoru nodded numbly, sliding the file back to him. "Speaking of Jibo, you told me not long ago you've been tracking him. What has he been up to?"

For the first time in a long while, the confident billionaire sported a troubled look on his face. "If my readings and intel are right, he seems to have been everywhere. I've heard mumblings about something called 'Final Horizon', and another about a lunar base on the moon." Seriozha scowled, slamming a fist down on the table angrily, startling Professor Idabashi. "But he seems to have retreated to that accursed Hora Island, for now. That little rat's up to something, I can smell it."

"Do you still think he had a hand in orchestrating the Tragedy?" The old professor asked curiously. "I remember that was your original accusation back when this world first went to hell."

"Well, what do you think?' The green haired director shot back, somewhat defensive. "He gets in bed with the Board of Hope's Peak, and then not long after the school pretty much collapses. Though I will admit, rumor has it a few students caused it, but I find that unlikely. What could a couple of kids do anyways?" Seriozha grumbled, before shaking his head. "We're getting off topic."

We have, haven't we?" Satoru laughed good naturedly, attempting to calm his friend down. "So, all the other Perfect's invitations have been sent and accepted? And I do hope you have enjoyed my personal choices."

Thankful for the change in topic, the billionaire visibly relaxed, settling into his seat as his smile returned. "Indeed. As Fuka mentioned earlier, they'll be arriving one by one in the coming days to settle in. I assume you'll be doing the same, my friend?"

Professor Idabashi hummed, tapping his cane on the floor several times in thought. "As much as I want to, I unfortunately have one more thing to take care of before I move in. You see, I've been mysteriously summoned to Towa City. At first I thought it was another attempt by the Towa Group to recruit me, but upon further confirmation, it seems that all of the closest family members and friends of the Hope's Peak students inside the Academy have been called upon. Something about a way we can help and support them going forward? To be frank with you, I just want to get into contact with my dear Keebo, to see if I can try to convince him one last time to join me here. Unfortunately, he seems to want to stay with his friends."

Once again, a troubled look appeared on Seriozha's face. "Satoru my friend, that sounds extremely suspicious. I urge you not to go, please... call it a hunch, but I have recently come down with the feeling that something terrible is about to happen."

"Ah, you worry too much, all this business with Momota has gotten to you!" The old professor joked. "I'll be fine, I assure you. It's only a few days, I'll be back by the 20th, at the latest. Try not to screw this place up while I'm gone!" He laughed.

I wouldn't dream of it!" the billionaire responded, returning his laugh. "This is the culmination of my life's work, I have not come this far just to fail. This is a place where morals and ethics are to be cast aside, in the name of true progress. I shall succeed at any cost." He rested a hand on Professor Idabashi's shoulder. "Just make sure you get back in one piece, yes? You're the world's leading authority on Robotics and Artificial Intelligence. I need you here."

"Yes, yes. Of course!" Satoru sighed in slight annoyance. "I'll be leaving in a few hours, the sooner the better."

Seriozha nodded in understanding, picking up the tea set. "Very well then. I'll prepare you some lunch before your journey. Just sit here for a few minutes, I'll be right back." He promised, disappearing through the glass door.

The weary professor sighed, drinking in more of the Institute before he was to depart soon. His attention was soon drawn to one of the many banners hanging above the doors and terminals. All bore the logo of the Chernobyl Institute, which was a simple radioactive symbol surrounded in a circle by broken chains, angelic and demonic wings sprouting forth from behind the radioactive symbol.

Below the logo, the motto **"Perfection in an Imperfect World"** was clearly readable.

As he thoughtfully mulled over the vivid imagery and meaning behind the logo and its matching motto, Satoru Idabashi was beginning to reluctantly agree with his friend's sinking feeling that the world's troubles were far from over.

* * *

**Author's Note and Additional Info:**

**Hi there everyone! Well, I admit I'm a bit nervous, but here we are! My first SYOC and big project story outside of the Mall AU, for those of you who have read that. Yes, this is an approved spin off of the Legacy of Despair series by Crit Fail, and I'm super excited to begin on this! The Chernobyl Institute and its killing game is an idea I have had for quite awhile, and after some planning and thought, the dream has been realized. I do hope you enjoyed some of the background info this prologue has provided.**

**So, let's get down to the nitty gritty:**

**•First off, if you haven't figured out already, this game takes place after the Hope's Peak game, but before the events of Final Horizon. As this is far before House of Horrors, supernatural talents and species are a no-go. Sorry.**

**•I'll also be a bit more picky on the types of OCs I receive. As most of the Perfect's who shall attend the Institute are former graduates from other talent schools, their ages will be on the older end, preferably in the 20-35ish range. So that's something to keep in mind.**

**•Another VERY IMPORTANT thing to note is that The Chernobyl Institute is a place where only the best of the best from the fields of science and mathematics will congregate to change the world, and the talents would preferably reflect that.**

**•No deadline has been set, but the VERY EARLIEST I'll potentially cut off submissions is late October. So everyone has plenty of time.**

**•Everyone can send in up to two OCs, however please note that only one per person will most likely be accepted. Also, feel free to ask me any questions y'all may have regarding talents and OCs.**

**I'm looking forward to what you all will come up with!**

** EDIT: As of 10/7/19, My cast is complete! Thank you to everyone who submitted, final deliberations were hard, and I had to reject many good apps unfortunately. Regardless if you got an OC in, I truly hope you enjoy the story!**

* * *

**Accepted OCs:**

**Male:**

1\. Akuji Komon: The Perfect Geodesist (Created by Life among the Dead)

2\. Kagemaru Kumori: The Perfect Phobologist (Created by Prince PokePersona)

3\. Ranze Ikeru: The Perfect Prostheticist (Created by BirblordAlmighty)

4\. Kline Morgan: The Perfect Programmer (Created by Magus1108)

5\. Emil Baardsen: The Perfect Optometrist (Created by Trust Me)

6\. Kazu Hensu: The Perfect Number Theorist (Created by RazTheGiant)

7\. Ikouze Kurieitā: The Perfect Artificial Intelligence Specialist (Created by 71526483)

8\. Ysandro De La Cruz: The Perfect Animal Behaviorist (Created by my death can't be cured)

9\. Leonidas Krzysiek Ardeshir Dimitri Khorasani: The Perfect Statistician (Created by Altomi)

**Female:**

1\. Fuka Tanaka: The Perfect Virologist (Created by JCW18)

2\. Miranda Bailey: The Perfect Geneticist (Created by Crit Fail)

3\. Hermit: The Perfect Physicist (Created by CelestialSkyDragon)

4\. Azra Rosário: The Perfect Entomologist (Created by PettyPunk)

5\. Ayeka Akemi: The Perfect Epidemiologist (Created by StoryProducer214)

6\. Tomoe Kagami: The Perfect Psychiatrist (Created by Yuuki Itsuka)

7\. Iris Murdoch: The Perfect Mycologist (Created by Abitat Eco)

8\. Shadya Quraishi: The Perfect Pathologist (Created by Prince PokePersona)

9\. Song Aisin Gioro: The Perfect Probabilist (Created by TheBlueCzar)

**Guest Characters:**

**Male:**

1\. ?: The Ultimate ? (Created by ?)

2\. ?: The Supreme ? (Created by CelestialSkyDragon)

3\. ?: The Perfect ? (Created by 71526483)

4\. Tom Barloc: The Former Ultimate Gelotologist (Created by pokemansuperallstar)

5\. ?: The Ultimate ? (Created by Yuuki Itsuka)

**Female:**

1\. Tsubasa Kamii: The Former Ultimate Event Coordinator (Created by JCW18)

2\. ?: The Perfect ? (Created by Crit Fail)

* * *

**Submitted OCs:**

1\. Fuka Tanaka: The Perfect Virologist (Created by JCW18)

2\. Miranda Bailey: The Perfect Geneticist (Created by Crit Fail)

3\. Isaiah Pekin: The Perfect Nanotechnician (Created by Mikq)

4\. Andre Rakuyama: The Perfect Cosmologist (Created by Winterjades)

5\. Kamui Kitagawa: The Perfect Astronomer (Created by gamergirl101)

6\. Akuji Komon: The Perfect Geodesist (Created by Life among the Dead)

7\. Ayeka Akemi: The Perfect Epidemiologist (Created by StoryProducer214)

8\. Hermit: The Perfect Physicist (Created by CelestialSkyDragon)

9\. Shadya Quraishi: The Perfect Pathologist (Created by Prince PokePersona)

10\. Reggie Waters: The Perfect Physical Oceanographer (Created by Scarytito21)

11\. Ranze Ikeru: The Perfect Prostheticist (Created by BirblordAlmighty)

12\. Maurus "Tilki" Yilmaz: The Perfect Textile Technologist (Created by runicwolf)

13\. Kagemaru Kumori: The Perfect Phobologist (Created by Prince PokePersona)

14\. Anika Barnard: The Perfect Prosthetic Engineer (Created by HoppsRj)

15\. Azra Rosário: The Perfect Entomologist (Created by PettyPunk)

16\. Kaeru Tokage: The Perfect Herpetologist (Created by tyleriscool123400)

17\. Emil Baardsen: The Perfect Optometrist (Created by Trust Me)

18\. Tomoe Kagami: The Perfect Psychiatrist (Created by Yuuki Itsuka)

19\. Kline Morgan: The Perfect Programmer (Created by Magus1108)

20\. Viktor Roshia: The Perfect Radiation Oncologist (Created by Sparten2121)

21\. Ikouze Kurieitā: The Perfect Artificial Intelligence Specialist (Created by 71526483)

22\. Kazu Hensu: The Perfect Number Theorist (Created by RazTheGiant)

23\. Ysandro De La Cruz: The Perfect Animal Behaviorist (Created by my death can't be cured)

24\. Dewi Griffith Evans: The Perfect Epidemiologist (Created by CPU-BLANC-WHITE-HEART)

25\. Iris Murdoch: The Perfect Mycologist (Created by Abitat Eco)

26\. Ashe Langdon: The Perfect Aerodynamics Expert (Created by MudkipOfDespair)

27\. Samantha Torres: The Perfect Data Analyst (Created by Cocomatia)

28\. Damien McArthur: The Perfect Biochemist (Created by WoopaKoopaTroopa)

29\. Ruby Steel: The Perfect Kinetic Artist (Created by richboylion)

30\. Tom Barloc: The Perfect Gelotologist (Created by pokemansuperallstar)

31\. Kendal Almeda: The Perfect Geomorphologist (Created by Abitat Eco)

32\. Jaleh Mazdaki: The Perfect Nuclear Scientist (Created by Superguy559)

33\. Kaori Sakamoto: The Perfect Scholar (Created by MasterParafin)

34\. Song Aisin Gioro: The Perfect Probabilist (Created by TheBlueCzar)

35\. Leonidas Krzysiek Ardeshir Dimitri Khorasani: The Perfect Statistician (Created by Altomi)

* * *

**Accepted OC Bios**

**1\. Akuji Komon**

**Creator: Life among the Dead**

**Gender: Male**

**Age: 22**

**Birthday: December 1st**

**Nationality: Japanese **

**Talent: Perfect Geodesist**

**Blood Type: AB+**

**Hair Color: Silver**

**Hair Style/Length: Short, messy hair that sticks out everywhere with a bit of curls at the ends. His straight, neat bangs are nearly so close together that they almost cover his eyes. **

**Eye Color: Green**

**Skin Tone: Pale**

**Body Type: Extremely skinny to the point where you could see his wrist bones, collarbone, ribs and spine if you look closely. His cheeks are sunken in, you can the blue veins in his wrists and his green eyes have dark bags underneath. **

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: Has various bruises on his face and further down his body. **

**Height: 5'0"**

**Weight: 66 lbs**

**Normal Clothing: A tight-fitting black button-up jacket with golden buttons and cufflinks, black leather pants (a bit tight), short light blue socks and brown moccasins. **

**Exercise Clothing: A blue tank top with thin straps that often fall off his shoulders, gray sweatpants with the pantlegs rolled up to the knees, and gray and white socks. **

**Sleepwear: A v-neck white shirt and black boxers, along with a black sleeping mask. **

**Accessories: He wears bandages around his neck. **

* * *

**2\. Fuka Tanaka**

**Creator: JCW18**

**Age: 36**

**Birthday: September 14th**

**Nationality: Japanese**

**Talent: Perfect Virologist**

**Blood Type: B Negative **

**Hair Color: Dark Blue**

**Hair Style/Length: Short and curly, coming down to her ears and upper neck. Despite the curls, her hair is very well cleaned and maintained.**

**Eye Color: Crimson Red**

**Skin Tone: White, yet fairly tanned from spending most of her time outdoors.**

**Body Type: Slim and petite, and good looking and has good amounts of muscle. However, Fuka is small for her age, could be mistaken for a young adult or teen.**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: Has several burns and a few minor cuts on her hands and arms. This is due to her past work outside with her hisband years ago.**

**Height: 5 Feet, 4 Inches.**

**Weight: 156 pounds.**

**Normal Clothing: Fuka wears a black tank top and long black jeans, however, a white lab coat with the Chernobyl Institute logo conservatively covers the rest of her body up. **

**Exercise Clothing: will simply remove her lab coat and change into shorts.**

**Sleepwear: She sleeps in a simple blue nightgown. This was an old birthday gift from her husband.**

**Accessories: Black rimmed reading glasses that she almost always wears. Also has her wedding ring, which she never takes off for any reason.**

* * *

**3\. Kagemaru Kumori**

**Creator: Prince PokePersona**

**Gender: Male**

**Age: 27 years old**

**Birthday: March 22nd**

**Nationality: Japanese**

**Talent: Phobologist**

**Blood Type: B-**

**Hair Color: Cobalt Blue**

**Hair Style/Length: Medium length messy hair messily styled around his head with loose strands perched in all different directions with some longer strands swirled upwards and sideways, with his hair ending at his neckline and some messy bangs framing the sides of his face and a messy fringe that casts a small shadow over his eyes.**

**Eye Color: Dark Red**

**Skin Tone: Pale White**

**Body Type: A skinny average frame with little muscle mass**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: A thick moderate deep scar over his right eye that goes vertically from his eyebrow to his right cheek almost looking like a burn mark, small needle marks on both of his forearms, some small scars covered all over his back and a small bat tattoo on his lower left leg.**

**Height: 5ft. 8inc. tall**

**Weight: 117lbs. **

**Normal Clothing: He wears a dark orange silk long sleeved dress shirt with black bats, red sharp vampire teeth, grey ghosts with black eyes and blue pumpkins with yellow eyes patterned all over his shirt, a velvet red black button up waistcoat over his shirt, a pair of black dress pants with white skulls patterned along the side of his pants, mahogany brown pointed toe dress shoes with black socks on his feet.**

**Exercise Clothing: He wears a dark red vest top with black and white werewolf claw marks patterned on the back of his top and a werewolf face with yellow eyes printed on the front, dark black gym shorts with red trimming near the leg holes made to look like spilled blood and red and grey running shoes with white socks with ghosts with black eyes on his feet.**

**Sleepwear: He wears a dark blue baggy shirt with a picture of a green Frankenstein monster on the front with grey baggy shorts.**

**Accessories: He wears a black tie with orange spider cobwebs patterns, a white bat like hair pin on the left side of his hair with grey wings and black eyes, fake blood blotted on his cheeks to look smudged and not fresh, thin white wrap bandages around each of his fingers, a black bracelet with white skull beads around his right wrist and two silver rings shaped like skeleton hands; one on his left index finger and the other on his right middle finger.**

**Other: He has a pet crow that he named, Corvo, a large black bird that perches himself on top of Kagemaru's head. He considers Corvo his best friend and feeds him bird treats every so often.**

* * *

**4\. Miranda Bailey **

**Creator: Crit Fail**

**Gender: Female**

**Age: 37 (Physically doesn't appear a day over 25)**

**Birthday: February 14th**

**Nationality: British**

**Talent: Perfect Geneticist (Formerly Ultimate Geneticist) **

**Blood Type: B+**

**Hair Color: Strawberry Blonde**

**Hair Style/Length: She has waist-length blonde hair that has several bangs coming down into her face, two bangs come down at the sides running all the way down that also frames her face.**

**Eye Color: Viridian Green**

**Skin Tone: Fair**

**Body Type: Extremely curvaceous. Wide ample hips, a curvy bottom, and a ridiculous gravity defying double J Cup bust size. She certainly bucks the stereotype of what you'd imagine for a bookworm.**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: There is a small white scar above her collarbone caused from a bullet.**

**Height: 5'9**

**Weight: 160 Lbs **

**Normal Clothing: Miranda is far less conservative when it comes to how she dresses compared to her daughter. It's not because she is crude or trashy but rather she just doesn't realize how physically attractive she is. Even in her late thirties she easily appears a decade younger, almost suspiciously so. She tends to wear a white lab coat not unlike her daughter. However she typically wears a one piece black form fitting dress that reaches her knees. It is rather low cut offering a more than generous view of her cleavage. She wears a pair of black dress shoes that match her dress. **

**Exercise Clothing: The Geneticist typically prefers to practice yoga as a way of exercising to stay fit and to calm herself. So she typically wears a hot pink yoga outfit. It's a mixture of spandex and even a headband. It looks right out of the 80's.**

**Sleepwear: A soft white translucent nightie that reaches mid thigh over a pair of cotton panties.**

**Accessories: Around her neck she wears a turquoise and silver locket that contains a picture of her and her family. In particular her Husband, and her children at a very young age. She also wears a pair of black horn rimmed glasses that tend to slip to the tip of her nose. Finally she still wears a wedding band even though her husband has been deceased for a long time.**

* * *

**5\. Ranze Ikeru**

**Creator: Birbddha**

**Gender: Male**

**Age: 42**

**Birthday: July 11th**

**Nationality: Japanese **

**Talent: Ultimate/Perfect Prostheticist (Graduated from HPA) **

**Blood: AB**

**Hair color: Crimson **

**Hair Style: A bit scruffy but mostly cleanly cut with noticeable sideburns **

**Eye color: a dark orange **

**Skin Tone: Pale**

**Body Type: Somewhat lanky but by no means a twig. **

**Scars: None**

**Height: 5'9**

**Weight: 176 lbs.**

**Normal Clothes: A dark red dress shirt under a buttoned white lab coat. Dark orange dress pants and black dress shoes**

**Excercise Clothes: Red T-shirt, black shorts.**

**Sleepwear: Boxers.**

**Accesories: A gold studded watch.**

* * *

**6\. Hermit**

**True name: [This information has been REDACTED upon the request of Professor Satoru Idabashi]**

**Creator: CelestialSkyDragon**

**Gender: Female**

**Age: ****[This information has been REDACTED upon the request of Professor Satoru Idabashi]**

**Birthday: ****[This information has been REDACTED upon the request of Professor Satoru Idabashi]**

**Nationality: ****[This information has been REDACTED upon the request of Professor Satoru Idabashi]**

**Talent: Perfect Physicist (Former ****[REDACTED])**

**Blood Type: ****[This information has been REDACTED upon the request of Professor Satoru Idabashi]**

**Hair Color: White with sky blue streaks**

**Hair Style/Length: Waist length, kept in twin tails, with black ribbons. **

**Eye Color: Turquoise (Left) Crimson Red (Right)**

**Skin Tone: Pale **

**Body Type: Petite **

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: She has a tattoo of a Fairy Tail guild mark on her left abdomen, in a bright blue color.**

**Hermit's Body: **

**She has two bright blue whisker marks on her cheeks which are actually LED lights and double as flash lights**

**Due to her [REDACTED], Hermit ended up losing all of her limbs. She had her arms designed by the best leading roboticists and prosthetic specialists. They are installed onto her torso using specially designed joints that connect to the shoulder, and are hooked directly into a Neuro linker on her neck that sends impulses to her arms from her brain. **

**The arms themselves don't weigh much more than a normal human arm. Though they are made of a tough alloy that allows Hermit to punch with superhuman strength. Running through her arms, are sensors that run through to her finger tips. She can remotely hack into computers and type faster than a human. She has two Petabyte Hard Drives on her arms, and her forefinger hides a USB Port.**

**Much like her arms, her legs were also replaced. Using the same technology, her legs connect to special mounts on her hips. Her entire pelvis was replaced with a metal chassis that allows her body to use these legs. Her spine was also replaced, allowing the neuro linker on her neck go connect to her legs as well as directly into her brain stem. Her legs are a smooth black color, the sides being dark violet in color. **

**The inside of each leg contains a CPU that doubles as an operating system. Not only does it help Hermit maintain her vital functions, but it also helps her store all kinds of information. Her knee joints are designed to be flexible, enough that she can walk normally. Her calves also have built in hydraulics, allowing her to jump higher and run faster than humans, though she hates to do either.**

**Inside her body, her ribcage has been replaced with a metal endoskeleton. Despite that, she contains several of her human organs. She still possess a digestive system, along with a renal system and her liver and pancreas as well. She however lacks her lungs, as her respiratory system was replaced with an air filtration system, as well as a power core that runs in Hydrogen Fuel cells. She still has her sexual organs as well as her reproductive system, which was left intact. Along with that, Hermit has her heart and her brain. Though her fuel cells power the machinery, her heart is what truly keeps her alive.**

**She also has pain receptors in what little human anatomy she has left. Thus, she can feel pain. As she doesn't need blood to survive, all arteries were removed and replaced with special cooling tubes as well as hydraulic fluid, which is pumped through her artificial limbs due to her still beating heart. **

**Embarrassingly enough, the smallest part of her body is her breasts. As a human, they were a healthy B-Cup. While her breasts still have her milk ducts and function as regular breasts, they also function as a radar and sonar. As well as a Doppler radar, allowing her to get a read of the weather. Professor Idabashi calls them "Satellite Implants" she calls them Antenna Nipples. She also has an antenna built into her head, allowing her to receive incoming radio signals and phone calls. She never has to hum her favorite song as she can play it in her head whenever she wants.**

**She is also equipped with a surveillance camera. Both of her eyes serve as lenses, however her red eye is crimson due go always recording. This is why it was made crimson, to hide the fact that her eyes are highly advanced cameras as well as ocular implants that replaced her original eyes, which has ruptured due to her ****[REDACTED]****. **

**Height: 4 feet 7 inches **

**Weight: 255 LBS **

**Normal Clothing: She wears a sleeveless, white crop-top shirt, which leaves her navel exposed. She wears a matching violet and white skirt and violet heeled ankle boots, lined with white faux fur.**

**Swimsuit: If for whatever reason she is near a pool, she will wear a white and black bikini. She wears a bandeau top, the left breast being White and the right black, while the bottom is a solid black color. (She is 100% waterproof but doesn't know how to swim. She to her weight she would sink to the bottom, and she's scared of drowning)**

**Exercise Clothing: She doesn't really exercise, but she would wear a tee shirt and dark blue shorts and running shoes.**

**Sleepwear: She sleeps completely naked. **

**Accessories: She wears a choker around her neck with a tag that reads E3 on it. She also has a glittering sapphire belly button ring she got when she turned 20, as a gift from her ****[REDACTED]. She**** wears it proudly.**

* * *

**7\. Kline Morgan**

**Creator: Magus1108**

**Gender: Male **

**Age: 26 **

**Birthday: November 13th**

**Nationality: German**

**Talent: Perfect Programmer **

**Blood Type: O- **

**Hair Color: Midnight black**

**Hair Style/Length: Kline's hair is kept cut short, and swept back to his left side. His hair looks otherwise meticulous and perfectly stylized as well, as if he's spent hours working on the way his hair looks. **

**Eye Color: One eye is blue, while the other is green.**

**Skin Tone: A fair, lightly tanned complexion: neither too pale nor too dark.**

**Body Type: Kline looks quite slim and slender, as if he hasn't worked out all that much in his life. One could look at a palm tree and easily mistake it for Kline, given his thin physique. He's not about to win any races, but he is reasonably fit for a person his age, overall. Kline could also be considered conventionally attractive when it comes to his looks.**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: N/A**

**Height: 5'11**

**Weight: 179 lbs **

**Normal Clothing: Kline wears casual business attire, a smart looking, dark blue suit jacket, a light blue button-up polo shirt beneath that, and a pair of black-blue pants that reach down to his ankles. He also wears a pair of dark brown dress shoes, and a stylish looking pair of black-rimmed glasses.**

**Sleepwear: Kline sleeps in a one-piece, button up set of red woolen pajamas.**

**Accessories: Kline keeps a state-of-the-art computer with him at all times in a work briefcase that he carries. Also in the briefcase is his smart phone, a special USB device, and an external hard drive. He also keeps a bag of state of the art tools with him as well, sometimes using them to modify his computer or otherwise upgrade his tech.**

* * *

**8\. Azra Rosário**

**Creator: PettyPunk**

**Gender: Female**

**Age: 34**

**Birthday: October 14th**

**Nationality: Mozambican**

**Talent: Perfect Entomologist **

**Blood Type: B+**

**Hair Color: Forest green**

**Hair Style/Length: Waist length hair worn straight down. Her bangs are wild and for the most part don't cover her face. **

**Eye Color: Umber**

**Skin Tone: Semi light brown, caramel**

**Body Type: Despite being in her mid 30's Azra has retained the same figure and soft facial features from when she was a teenager. Her chest is an a-cup, and her waist is fairly narrow with little fat or muscle. Meanwhile her hips are very wide and her ass is large and firm. To the point that she is usually unable to find comfortable jeans to wear. **

**Scars,Tattoos or Birthmarks: A stylized tattoo of a large bee on the left side of her stomach.**

**Height: 5'2 **

**Weight: 108 pounds**

**Normal Clothing: A white sweater that hangs off the shoulders and is cropped at the midriff. The sleeves are rolled up to her elbows. A small black vest over top the sweater that also stops at her midsection. The vest has a neon green honeycomb pattern. A dark green a-line skirt that reaches her knees. Brown flip flop sandals**

**Exercise Clothing: A white and neon green sports bra, black training shorts, bare foot, and hair held back with a brown scrunchie**

**Sleepwear: Silk pink camisole and silver cotton panties **

**Accessories: a black lacy choker, her nails painted dark green, a small shoulder bag that contains her notebooks as well as a mini makeup kit.**

**Companion: Arcelio- an African giant millipede that Azra keeps as a pet. Arcelio is usually found coiled around Azra's forearm or resting on her shoulders. He is pure black in coloration save for his numerous feet which are copper. He is 2' long. **

* * *

**9\. Emil Baardsen**

**Creator: Trust Me**

**Gender: Male**

**Age: 24**

**Birthday: October 12th**

**Nationality: Norwegian**

**Talent: Perfect Optometrist**

**Blood Type: O-**

**Hair Color: Clover green**

**Hair Style/Length: Smooth locks that are parted down the center, leaving his forehead exposed. Just a bit longer than chin-length.**

**Eye Color: Indigo blue**

**Skin Tone: Slightly pale**

**Body Type: Tall and deceptively slender while wearing his coat. He is surprisingly muscular and well-built underneath his clothes. Emil also has perfectly trimmed fingernails.**

**Scars, Tattoos, or Birthmarks: Apart from the worryingly dark circles underneath his eyes, his skin is smooth and free of blemishes.**

**Height: 6'3" (190 cm)**

**Weight: 184 lbs (83 kg)**

**Normal Clothing: ****A baggy, olive green raincoat worn over a taupe dress shirt, dark grey slacks, and brown hiking shoes.**

**Exercise Clothing: Emil's not the type to pack a spare set of exercise clothing. He'd simply remove his raincoat and roll up his sleeves. Alternatively, he could also go shirtless if the situation calls for it.**

**Sleepwear: Emil doesn't sleep. Jokes aside, he rarely changes out of his clothes before going to bed. He'd just try to sleep in them.**

**Accessories: ****Emil always wears a pair of half-rimmed glasses with a thin, black frame. He only takes them off right before going to bed.**

**Within the pockets of his raincoat, Emil keeps a number of microfibre clothes for cleaning glasses, as well as eye drops for dry eyes. Neatly arranged along the inside of his coat are dozens of empty glasses frames in every colour and style.**

* * *

**10\. Ayeka Akemi**

**Creator: StoryProducer214**

**Gender: Female**

**Age: 32**

**Birthday: January 8th**

**Nationality: Japanese**

**Talent: Perfect Epidemiologist**

**Blood Type: A+**

**Hair Color: Black**

**Hair Style/Length: Long hair that reaches mid-back and is tied into a ponytail, with bangs that nearly cover her right eye.**

**Eye Color: Pink**

**Skin Tone: Slightly pale**

**Body Type: Extremely petite, combined with having a slender build and a doll-like appearance, along with frail-looking legs.**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: N/A**

**Height: 4'0 ft**

**Weight: 81 lbs**

**Normal Clothing: She wears a dark brown trench coat (which reaches past her feet) over a cream-colored v-neck sweater, white dress shirt and a black necktie, a gray pencil skirt that reaches her thighs, and Mary Jane brown shoes with black knee-high socks.**

**Exercise Clothing: N/A**

**Sleepwear: She wears a yellow kitten onesie.**

**Accessories: She carries a dark green satchel over her shoulder, which are filled with her notes. She also wears a black scarf that covers her neck. Aditionally, she uses an electric wheelchair, with a controller to help her move around and a small keyboard to allow her to type down what she has to say, which would come out through a device that's attached to the armrests of the wheelchair itself. (The reason for that addition is because she is mute.)  
**

* * *

**11\. Kazu Hensu**

**Creator: RazTheGiant**

**Gender: Male**

**Age: 41**

**Birthday: December 21st**

**Nationality: Japanese**

**Talent: Perfect Number Theorist**

**Blood Type: A-negative**

**Hair Color: Dusty Blond**

**Hair Style/Length: Slicked back hair that reaches his shoulders. A neatly trimmed beard.**

**Eye Color: Gold**

**Skin Tone: Peach**

**Body Type: Extremely tall, muscular, and overall fit with minimal body fat**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: A mix of very old and faded bullet, slash and stab wound scars across his torso. **

**Height: 7'3"**

**Weight: 310 pounds**

**Normal Clothing: The white lab coat uniform from the Institute tied around his waist. A tan t-shirt that has a blue grid design along the chest. Faded blue jeans that have frayed ends. Black leather dress shoes.**

**Exercise Clothing: Tight-fitting black underarmor tank shirt, grey side stripe running shorts and white runners. **

**Sleepwear: Maroon colored sweatpants. A dark blue robe and tan slippers if he needs to get out of bed.**

**Accessories: Multiple notepads each one stuffed and covered with papers and notes on various subjects depending on the notebook, all carried in a brown messenger bag**

* * *

**12\. Tomoe Kagami**

**Creator: Yuuki Itsuka**

**Gender: Female**

**Age: 34**

**Birthday: February 14**

**Nationality: Japanese**

**Talent: Psychiatrist **

**Blood Type: O**

**Hair Color: Black**

**Hair Style/Length: Medium length hair, braided to left side**

**Eye Color: Red**

**Skin Tone: Fair**

**Body Type: Slender and curvy**

**Scars,Tattoos or Birthmarks: Scar on her abdomen**

**Height: 163cm**

**Weight: 57kg**

**Normal Clothing: She wears a green turtleneck sweater and a white lab coat. Tomoe also wears a black pencil skirt, a gray stockings and a pair of high-heeled boots.**

**Exercise Clothing: a red track suit.**

**Sleepwear: She sleeps wearing a black negligee**

**Accessories: She wears a pair of thick red framed glasses. She's also wearing a silver bracelet and a wedding ring. She also carries a notepad with her.**

* * *

**13\. Ikouze Kurieitā**

**Creator: 71526483**

**Gender: Male**

**Age: 24**

**Birthday: February 29th**

**Nationality: Japanese**

**Talent: Perfect Artificial Intelligence Specialist**

**Blood Type: A-**

**Hair Color: Purple with a bit of pink.**

**Hair Style/Length: His partially messy/spiked hair goes down to a bit beneath his ears. His long bangs are parted with single bang curled past the bridge of his nose and curled onto his cheek. On the right side is a single strand of pink hair that just about reaches his shoulder and on his upper left is a pink stripe. He also has a small upper ponytail in the back. And when he wants his bangs out of his eyes, he ties it into a ponytail on the top of his head. Two small, thick pieces of hair sprout on the left side of his head.**

**Eye Color: Glimmering fuchsia pink with red eyeshadow at the corner and bottom of his eyes, making his eyes stand out more and hiding the dark circles under his eyes at the same time.**

**Skin Tone: Perfectly tanned**

**Body Type: He has a fit yet lithe build. He has broad shoulders and smooth skin. His face has wolfish look to it with angular cheekbones, lush lips and has slightly sharp teeth. His eyebrows are the same shade as his hair. This often earns him being called 'handsomely hot'.**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: None.**

**Height: 5'9"**

**Weight: 139 lbs**

**Normal Clothing: He normally goes shirtless or would wear a sleeveless vest, black athletic shorts, and half white/half black sneakers.**

**Exercise Clothing: Same as normal clothing.**

**Sleepwear: Sleeps naked**

**Accessories: He wears a small red band around his neck, a silver tablet is attached to the inner forearm, just below his wrist, a single black earbud connected to the tablet and put in his ear, and a small stylus strapped to his other forearm that is silver towards the tip, with the end being black with a red stripe in the middle.**

* * *

**14\. Iris 'Rissa' Murdoch**

**Creator: Abitat Eco**

**Gender: Female**

**Age: 28**

**Birthday: 15th October (National Mushroom Day)**

**Nationality: Scottish**

**Talent: Perfect Mycologist (Formerly Ultimate Mycologist)**

**Blood Type: B-**

**Hair Color: Iris's hair is a very light fawn shade of brown, with a few honey coloured highlights scattered disperse through her partings.**

**Hair Style/Length: Her hair is generally rather wavy, curled under the ends to give it some body and strength as it hangs against her face. Iris's hair is quite long when she wears it loosely down, hanging to the middle of her back. However, she is more likely to wear her hair in a low side ponytail down her left shoulder with the ends curled. Two separate sections of her hair are often seen woven together in small delicate plaits which hang on either side of her face down to just past her chin and in front of her ears, secured with tiny light blue ribbons. One particularly troublesome thicker strand of hair sticks up unevenly from her forehead and deviates to the right a little, instantly giving her a slightly less tidy and professional appearance despite her attempts to try and flatten it. As for her bangs, Iris has split them in two to either side of her forehead, the right section held by a few clips, whilst the left section hangs to that side of her face, stopping at the level of her upper eyelid and ever so slightly obscuring her vision, although a quick shake of the head should fix that up.**

**Eye Color: From a glance, Iris's eyes appear to be an amber brown in shade. Her eyes are almond shaped with naturally long eyelashes and sit below her thin and slightly arched eyebrows, coloured a similar shade as her hair and sometimes furrowed in a thoughtful frown.**

**Skin Tone: Iris's complexion is typically rather fair and as such she can be a little susceptible to sunburn.**

**Body Type: Iris's body shape is quite mature, although she may be just a little shorter than average in regards to her height. Her weight is proportional to her height and her overall body type resembled the pair (slightly curvy hips, narrower top). Her limbs may appear a little skinny, particularly her legs as a result of atrophy in her current state. Due to this, she is confined to a manual wheelchair which she wheels around herself using her arms. As such, her legs might be weak, but there is a concealed strength within her upper arms that should not be underestimated, most likely obtained from using them to direct her wheelchair around. As well as her slight curves, she has a considerable chest size, sitting at a comfortable D-cup. Her face shape is oval, with a subtly pointed chin and freckles dotted across the bridge of her nose. Her ears are of an average size and poke through the strands of her hair and her other facial features are in proportion to each other, from her small button nose to her peach coloured thin lips, often pressed together in contemplation.**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: Iris has a small birthmark shaped a little like a rose on the inside of her right wrist, although it is a little splodgy. She also has a small tattoo on her left shoulder blade underneath her blouse, a toadstool with something written inside in tiny writing. As for scars, Iris has a few faded scars from the incident the most notable a thin pink line across the lower part of her left cheek, although the main 'scar' from that incident is highlighted by the presence and necessity of her wheelchair.**

**Height: 5.6 ft (standing)**

**Weight: 146 lbs**

**Normal Clothing: Iris wears her clothing in a neat and tidy manner that gives off an air of professionalism, whilst being a little quirky and casual as it is tailored rather well to her talent and interests. This includes a navy ruffled blouse with a white collar folded down on both sides of her neck, a thin red ribbon tied off in a neat bow in the centre. The blouse bears a cute and quirky mushroom pattern, depicting various fungi and toadstools, with short and equally ruffled sleeves, the rim tucked neatly into her waistband and a short red tie hanging smartly down the centre of the blouse, a few pearl white buttons of the blouse underneath the hanging garment. On her lower body, Iris wears a pair of smart and slightly loose red trousers, which are wider rimmed at the bottom where they end at her ankle, a few side pockets stitched on either side. A pair of tan coloured sturdy boots are worn on her feet, laced up securely with a good grip, worn over white socks with a fairy pattern on them. They are her favourite pair of boots from when she used to treck through the Scottish hills and moorlands...back then. Anyway, alongside this, she also has a white long sleeved jacket which she will wear occasionally, especially if cold. It hangs flared a little way past her waist, with large pockets in the sides and quite fittingly resembling a scientist's lab coat, but shorter and more casual.**

**Exercise Clothing: For exercising, Iris would wear something a little more casual: a light red vest top with a white polka dot pattern on her top (fittingly resembling a mushroom) with either white or light grey leggings on her bottom, complete with light blue ankle socks and white trainers with a bright red stripe, the ends laced neatly together (she likes to change her footwear, it helps her feel 'normal' still). A pale grey zipper hoodie can be thrown on if she feels too cold and her hair will remain worn in its high ponytail, or a slightly lower one. For swimming, she would wear a similar red and white polka dot swimsuit with slightly flared pants and need assistance to get into the pool, or transfer to a waterproof wheelchair.**

**Sleepwear: At night time, Iris will wear a simple pale violet nightdress with a darker purple lace trimming at the rim of the nightdress, reaching down to her knees. The top part of the nightdress shows a central image of a beautiful butterfly resting on heather, the words 'Flutter by Butterfly' scrawled underneath in fancy writing. With this, she will wear a light grey dressing gown if she is cold, also reaching to her knees, whilst on her feet she will wear a pair of purple coloured flat slippers with white pom-poms on the ends.**

**Accessories: Iris does have a few notable accessories to further enhance her outfit. This includes a pair of latex pale blue gloves (for when performing her research and work at the bench) which she carries in her pocket, a few badges on her jacket (including fungi and a few Scottish natural species such as heather and various butterflies), a smart hexagon faced watch with a tan wrist strap and a small silver pendant chain tucked behind her collar, the central image bearing a fairy, containing a tiny photograph of her husband. Additionally, she also has a large light brown coloured backpack which she carries with her on the bars of her wheelchair. This is filled with various collecting gear, vials (some labelled 'TOXIC') and the like for her field work collecting fungi samples (made a lot harder more recently due to her state), as well as a flask of her favourite vegetable broth, sketchpad and stationary, a crossword book and a lucky hand-knitted dolly with fairy wings, which is precious to her and helps her to try and keep strong when days seem tough and despair is rampant.**

* * *

**15\. Ysandro De La Cruz**

**Creator: my death can't be cured**

**Gender: Male**

**Age: 20**

**Birthday: February 16th**

**Nationality: Colombian**

**Talent: Perfect Animal Behaviorist **

**Blood Type: A-**

**Hair Color: Dark brown**

**Hair Style/Length: He has long hair that goes down to a bit beneath his shoulders but is usually pulled into a low ponytail with a human skull scrunchie and it looks soft and fluffed up with small points sticking out randomly. His bangs leans to the right and the top of his head is messed up a bit.**

**Eye Color: Shiny blue**

**Skin Tone: Richly tanned, flawless.**

**Body Type: He has a slim and fit build with an average amount of muscles. He has long legs that actually make up most of his height; his chest and arms are short compared to other males his age. He has a square jaw, a slightly muscled neck, and his thin lips often pulled into a lopsided grin. This overall gives him a boyishly pretty boy look.**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: His hands and forearms has several scars from scratches and bites from various animals.**

**Height: 5'2"**

**Weight: 115 lbs**

**Normal Clothing: A white v-neck exposing his collarbone, a parted open blue jacket with the collar sticking out, ripped and dirty jeans, and black and white Nike sneakers.**

**Exercise Clothing: He takes off his jacket and switch out the jeans for brown cargo shorts.**

**Sleepwear: He wears a white t-shirt and blue plaid pajama pants.**

**Accessories: He carries a red dog leash around his neck and a thick red book holding all of the pictures he took over the years.**

**Friend: A male German Shepard pup named Minino. Ysandro usually shortens it to Mini-pup. He stands at 1'6" and weighs 72 lbs. He has black and tan fur. He has a diamond-embedded black collard with a metallic tag with his and his owner's name on it. **

* * *

**16\. Shadya Quraishi **

**Creator: Prince Pokepersona**

**Gender: Female**

**Age: 23 years old**

**Birthday: November 8th**

**Nationality: Egyptian**

**Talent: Perfect Pathologist**

**Blood Type: O+**

**(Appearance)**

**Hair Color: Dark Black**

**Hair Style/Length: Long messy wavy hair that reaches her mid back with messily curled tips, messy strands of bed head strewn across her hair, with unkempt bangs that almost cover her eyes and messy bangs that frame the sides of her face.**

**Eye Color: Dark Brown**

**Skin Tone: Light Brown**

**Body Type: A very skinny, almost waif like, physique with a B cup sized chest.**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: A long thin scar on her left forearm, some small scars on her right forearm and a birthmark of a blob like organism on her left leg.**

**Height: 5ft. 5inc. tall**

**Weight: 96lbs.**

**Normal Clothing: She wears a dull white long sleeved casual round neck top with a dark magenta heart outline with spiky black tips printed on the front of her top with the words "Sick Of Feelings" in jagged grey wording above and below the heart, a silk below the knee length skirt patterned with an Egpytian print with brown lines, dark orange fan like emblems and green flowers near the edges of her skirt, a mustard brown long sleeved open cardigan over her top, plain dark brown slip on sneakers with funky patterned pink and yellow striped socks with blue disease organisms on her feet.**

**Exercise Clothing: She wears a dark pink short sleeved top with dark yellow spiky stripes patterned all over, a pair of black leggings with dark brown squiggly lines running along the sides of her leggings and plain grey sneakers with white socks on her feet.**

**Sleepwear: A plain long sleeved grey shirt with dark green disease particles dotted on the design and dull brown sleeping shorts.**

**Accessories: A pair of square black framed large glasses on her face, a plain maroon and brown striped sleeping eye mask on top of her hair, a simple thin gold necklace with a silver moon pendant around her neck, a brown bracelet with dark green and dark pink stones around her left wrist, a silver disease molecule bracelet around her right wrist and a small travel size soft pillow inside a black and pink zig zag pillow case she carries around with her.**

* * *

**17\. ****Leonidas Krzysiek Ardeshir Dimitri Khorasani **

**Created by: Altomi**

**Gender: Male**

**Age: 35**

**Birthday: July 7th**

**Nationality: Thracian**

**Talent: Perfect Statistician**

**Blood Type: A+**

**Hair Color: Dark brown that fades to a golden color at the ends**

**Hair Style/Length: Full and long hair worn in dreads tied back into a ponytail with the ends of his hair reaching his mid chest, with a short black beard on his face.**

**Eye Color: Bright pink**

**Skin Tone: Dark brown with cool undertones**

**Body Type: Trim and fit, he is not overly bulky or lean and posses quite an attractive figure.**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: N/A**

**Height: 6'6"**

**Weight: 220lbs**

**Normal Clothing: A white collar shirt with gold buttons, left unbuttoned to the midway point exposing his chest. An expensive looking teal suit jacket with white pinstripes, worn open and with the right sleeve rolled up to the elbow exposing his arm. A well fitted pair of black pants, and a pair of black dress shoes.**

**Exercise Clothing: A tight black short sleeved shirt that conforms to the muscles on his chest, and a pair black and gold exercise shorts.**

**Sleepwear: A silk pair of black pants, and a silk teal robe worn open.**

**Accessories: Gold cufflinks, a golden pocket square worn in his jackets left breast pocket, and a pair of golden framed glasses.**

* * *

**18.** **Song Aisin Gioro**

**Creator: TheBlueCzar**

**Gender: Female**

**Age: 19**

**Birthday: March 12th**

**Nationality: Chinese**

**Talent: Perfect Probabilist**

**Blood Type: O-**

**Hair Color: Lilac**

**Hair Style: Worn straight, unless she is wearing something more traditionally Chinese, in which case she will tie them in twin buns**

**Length: Shoulder blade length**

**Eye Color: Dark violet**

**Skin Tone: Lightly tanned**

**Body Type: Song has a tall muscular build with C-cup breasts. Her face often looks very serious and intense.**

**Scars, Tattoos or Birthmarks: Her fingers are callous and she doesn't wear any makeup**

**Height: 6' 4"**

**Weight: 215 pounds**

**Normal Clothing: A dark grey military-style jacket unbuttoned. Underneath is a white short sleeve shirt with a deep cut. She wears a pair of matching dark grey slacks with a pair of polished black combat boots.**

**Exercise Clothing: A white tank top with the Chernobyl Institute's symbol on the chest. Sky blue sweat shorts that end at mid-thigh, but no shoes or socks. She still has on her arm wrappings as well as having matching ones on her legs.**

**Sleepwear: A blue nightgown that reaches her shins and doesn't cover her arms.**

**Accessories: A dark blue chocker, her hands are covered in white bandage covers she changes regularly. A silver briefcase with all of her papers, a high tech calculator, her journal and several pens & pencils.**


	2. Prologue: Welcome to the Institute Act 2

**Author's Note: And here it is! Part 1 of the first half of the casts character intros! Honestly, I'm excited to even get this far, and all the character's so far are great. **

**So, a few quick words for those of you who may not be on the discord: submission's close on October 1st. After that, I will be selecting the rest of my cast and begin truly working on the story, this leaves everyone with a little under a month to wrap up submissions, which I think is fair. **

**Lastly, I just wanna give a big thanks to Crit, Petty, Celestial, Magus, and Trust for Roleplaying their characters this chapter. They turned out great!**

**With those final words, enjoy the beginning of Heartless New World!**

**3/2/20 Rewrite: Changes have been made to fit the new canon, and some errors have been fixed.  
**

* * *

**November 14th, 2017**

**2:46 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 2**

**Medical Lab**

The Medical Lab on the second floor of the Institute was the second largest of all the labs within the compound, containing the most high-tech and revolutionary medical devices and care in the world, even containing treatments and instruments that had never been revealed and distributed to the general public. The Perfect Optometrist's office was no exception, having nothing but the most cutting edge glasses, lasik, and contact care.

A tall man wearing a baggy, olive green raincoat and brown hiking shoes—an outfit more suited to outdoor adventures than laboratory work—stood next to one such contraption. After tuning a number of dials, the Perfect Optometrist took a seat on the reclining chair. Emil Baardsen shifted his half-rimmed glasses up his tired-looking face before peering through the bug-eyed lenses of an innovative photometer.

A slight bump made the man jump slightly in his seat, shifting his gaze towards the doorway. There stood a rather short young woman, rubbing her forehead and mumbling things under her breath. She shifted her gaze slightly, looking into the room with a squint. "Excuse me, is this a good time?"

In an unhurried manner, Emil slid his glasses back down his forehead before rising from his seat. He tucked one of his clover green bangs behind his ear before staring down listlessly at the newcomer. "Oh, Hermit... Have you come to seek seclusion here? As you can see, I'm not particularly preoccupied with anything, so this is an adequate time for me if it is for you." The man's voice was languid and unusually soft for his size.

"Oh, I didn't come here to seek seclusion. I'm just having a bit of trouble seeing," she replied, taking a few steps into the room. She bumped into a nearby table, knocking a few things to the ground. She cringed at the sound of breaking glass. "Okay, I'm having a lot of trouble seeing."

"I can see that." He nodded sagely.

"W-well, if it isn't any trouble, do you think I could get an exam? I don't want to keep breaking things. Everything here is so expensive." she said, a sheepish look on her face.

Emil approached the woman, his footsteps light yet ominous. He stopped just a foot away from her before beginning to slowly unbutton his raincoat. "Shhh... Expenses should not be a concern of yours, Hermit. You may be at ease, for I have anticipated this exact scenario. It was hard not to take notice of you stumbling into everyone at the party yesterday."

She shuddered, glancing away from the man, memories of the party filling her mind. "Oh please, don't remind me of that. I ended up bumping into that Ranze guy on accident. He wouldn't stop talking to me." she said with a sigh. "Anyway, I'm glad that you can help me, Emil, I was nervous about asking you. But I feel a lot more comfortable now."

"And... here we are," Emil declared before removing from his coat what looked to be a gift-wrapped glasses case complete with a red ribbon. He gently handed it down to the Physicist. "Consider this a belated Christmas present for you. Oh, my apologies. You may not celebrate Christmas under that name. An X-mas present it shall be, then."

"It's fine, I actually did celebrate Christmas back home, it's been quite a while though," Hermit said, slowly reached for the case, taking it carefully into her hands. Despite her not being able to see well, she could tell what it was the moment she opened it. "Oh wow, Emil this is so sweet of you!"

Resting within was a pair of glasses, or rather the frame. It was light pink in color, with some small crystals near the edges of the frame. They were rather simple and quite suited to her taste. "I know I have to look very close to see them, but they're wonderful. Thank you!"

"Simply stunning..." the Optometrist mused as a small smile spread across his lips. "Don't mention it. I should be the one thanking you for adding another touch of beauty to this world." He took a step back before gesturing to the seat. "Come now, let's do your exam so we can get a proper set of lenses fitted onto you. Your eyes are quite special, so I must admit that I am looking forward to the challenge."

"I hope so. Admittedly, I'm still getting used to... certain aspects of myself. I wasn't expecting to go near-blind like this. I wish I had more information about myself, but the most important files were purged." she said, sighing. "I'm getting real worried, especially with what's happening on the outside."

Emil turned around until his perfectly-postured back was facing the cybernetic woman. "As it usually goes, what's outside has little bearing on what is inside. It wouldn't be unreasonable for me to think that you understand this on a personal level well beyond what I am familiar with. Now then, we have our work to do, Hermit," he said as he faced her and gestured to the seat once more.

"Indeed we do. Just tell me what to do and I'll do it!" she said cheerfully, practically jumping into the seat. It creaked a bit from her weight but held true. "Oof, maybe I shouldn't have jumped into it."

The Optometrist made his way around to a touchscreen on the machine's side. A few finger taps later, Hermit's seat was suddenly raised before the phoropter swung down to precisely accommodate her face. "I'm assuming this is your first time. I'll be cycling through a series of lenses now, and I need you to tell me how they compare to one another in terms of clarity. Try reading the letters projected onto the far wall—don't squint."

"Okay," she replied, keeping her eyes as wide as possible. She noticed all of the letters were blurry, save for the giant E, and the first and second rows. She took a deep breath. "The first letter is E, row one is Z, X, V, C, Y. The second row is T, H, F, O, P... that's all I can see."

"Hmm, how intriguing... How's this? Better or worse?" Emil asked as he toggled through to a new set of lenses.

"Worse, I can't see anything. It looks like a car windshield in the middle of a monsoon," she admitted, resisting the urge to squint. "I didn't think my vision was this bad, I'm scared of losing my sight entirely. I wouldn't be able to see my DS screen."

"I see... it's worse than I thought. Well, there's no reason to be concerned, Hermit. I believe I can still correct your vision. Thick glasses have a certain wholesomeness about them," Emil offered with an accepting smile.

"As long as I can see, I don't think I mind the thickness of the lenses. I'll just let you work your magic, Emil!" she said with a grin. The two continued making small talk as the Perfect Optometrist cycled through each lens, making sure he got everything as accurate as possible.

* * *

**4:02 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 4**

**Director's Office**

Seriozha smiled, settling into his seat across from his laptop and monitors, all containing video feeds connected to the entire compound. So far, everything was going according to his design. All of the applicants he had selected had turned out great, despite some of their quirks. The sharply dressed man's smile turned into a frown, as he glanced down at a framed picture on his desk, showing him, Satoru Idabashi, and Jibo Momota from half a decade ago, all smiles. Seriozha's expression hardened.

"Satoru my friend, I do hope you make it through this ok." He muttered, shaking his head. "Though this changes nothing, the plan remains the same..."

The former Real Estate Tycoon was quickly shaken out of his musings by a ring coming from his computer, announcing a video call. Seriozha's wolfish grin returned.

"Ah, and my dear golden goose herself comes calling..." The green-haired man straightened his suit and sported a neutral expression, before accepting the call.

The Geneticist anxiously chewed on her thumb as she cast a glance over her shoulder. Her vibrant green eyes studying something or someone in the adjacent room before her attention quickly shifted back to the monitor before her. She now found herself staring face to face with Seriozha.

Miranda immediately mustered a sheepish smile as she adjusted her glasses. "Oh, Director! I hope this isn't a bad time. I hope everyone at the Institute has been enjoying their new home. I was hoping to discuss that offer you'd made not too long ago."

Seriozha gave her a soft, sympathetic smile, a complete turnaround from the hungry, wolfish grin he usually had. "My dear, I always have time for you. The opening days have been... well, about as well as one could hope during these troubling times. The collapse of society itself has put a damper on everyone's spirits, as they worry for their loved ones..." Seriozha sighed. "But, I do think the welcome party we held yesterday helped quite a bit. Everyone here is slowly warming up to one another, thankfully. I assume you have taken time to consider my offer?"

Miranda's lips pursed together softly. "...It seems there may be no end in sight. I know it means little...but my heart goes out to everyone else. I myself worry for my own children... but sadly they're is nothing any of us can do, I suppose..." she trailed off a moment as her jaw tensed slightly, before she continued.

"Jibo claimed to have some knowledge of the matter but I think he was merely using it as a carrot to keep me cooperating with him. However, I cannot idly in good conscience turn a blind eye to what's going on. The experiments are nothing short of nightmarish, I don't think he wanted me to see what he was doing, however, I believe he and his brother were even experimenting on his niece. Suffice it to say, he has changed and much like the rest of the world, it's not for the better. What he was doing… I would report him to the authorities but...I'm sure you're well aware of the state of law enforcement at the moment."

The former Real Estate Tycoon sighed deeply, placing a hand over his chest as if her report had physically hurt him. "Yes, you are quite right my dear. And even if that were the case, nothing would happen anyway. Even before this wretched tragedy, he had connections and was backed by Hope's Peak themselves. He was, and still is, untouchable." Seriozha leaned forward, resting his hands on his desk as he looked at her seriously. "Do you know, my dear, why Hope's Peak backed him? It was because of his advancements in what they ended up calling the 'Kamukura Project'. Its objective? To create the perfect lifeform. He was playing god long before the world fell apart!" He slammed his fist down dramatically on the table, rattling the screen violently and causing Miranda to flinch.

The green-haired man collected himself, clearing his throat and adjusting his suit. "My apologies, Miranda dear. It seems I still get worked up even after all these years." He ran a hand through his hair, tapping on his desk in thought. "Even now, I still secretly wonder if he had a hand in orchestrating this awful tragedy. Has he said anything as such to you?"

"To be quite honest, I don't think he fully trusts me as he once did. I do know that I overheard him discussing something known as the Horizon Project and something simply known as Rapture. However I merely overheard such things, I wasn't in a place to question what they meant," Miranda responded as she crossed her legs as her nose crinkled slightly. "...I can tell you one thing for certain though. He has fine-tuned the ability of cloning. In fact...I might have procured one of his subjects without his consent," she said before clearing her throat as a rosy blush graced her cheeks. "Which is tied to the abruptness of my call. I couldn't bear to see what he was doing. I wasn't in a place to wage a war, but I figured it was my moral responsibility to save at least save one life...so that's what I did."

"Cloning..." Seriozha muttered under his breath, before quickly recovering. "My dear Miranda, I hope you realize just how amazing - and dangerous - that technology is. In the right hands, it could bring about a golden age of humanity. In the wrong ones, it could make our already fragile world even more fractured." He told her softly, yet sternly. "This... clone that you have, is it with you? And the technology for it as well?"

Miranda shifted uncomfortably. "I believe I've already seen the dangers of someone using it improperly Director. Jibo himself seemed to be using some sort of secret source of genetic material. I believe this source possessed increased levels of tissue regeneration which was ideal as a basis for cloning. From the observations I've made myself, I believe this material is passed onto each subject. It's almost like a dominant gene that is passed on," she paused as she chewed on her bottom lip. "I do have the child with me. However, I must insist that she be treated as nothing more than a normal little girl. I know how our ilk can get when so much is at stake but you have to promise me you will restrain yourself and anyone else from crossing any line. I know there aren't many safe places in the world right now but I won't allow her to be turned into another lab rat."

The sharply dressed Director nodded sagely, reclining in his seat as he hummed. "You have my word, this young girl will live in peace here. As long as we have the research notes and the general idea of how it works, I'm quite confident that we can crack the process right open." Seriozha once again glanced at the photograph on his desk, before turning back to the Geneticist. "I admit, we have taken a blow with the disappearance of Professor Idabashi. Even though he focuses on robotics and AI, he had recently taken an interest in organic lifeforms. I pray that my friend returns to us." The green-haired man shook his head. "But still, we must move forward. Miranda Bailey, this is my dream: I am working to create a world that our children can be proud of, where everyone's voices and opinions can be heard, and immediately acted upon. Where social status, race, gender, disease, and even death no longer plague and divide us. So, I ask... no, I beg you... to help me make that world a reality. Will you join me and the fine men and women here who strive towards that goal too?"

A moment of silence passed between the pair before the Geneticist allowed for a sincere smile. "Of course, you don't have to ask again. Now more than ever, I see that the Institute could be the saving grace of mankind. Right now the world could use that kind of hope," she mused before a bit of amusement flitted across her face. "Besides, it's been ages since I've seen Azra. I wonder if she's still as obsessive," Miranda pondered as she tilted her head ever so slightly.

"Oh, I almost forgot that you and Ms. Rosario had history together, what a small world we live in!" Seriozha leaned back, exhaling his held breath with a laugh. "Well, while I am not as sure about the obsessive part, but she is quite... eccentric. But the girl means well." The Director picked up a pen, tapping it against his head in thought. "I'm glad you have faith in not only our mission, but me as well. I'll be looking forward to your arrival. But, I must ask... do you have a reliable, safe way to get off of Hora Island? I have heard some... unsettling rumors regarding the place. Your safety is my top priority." He asked her gently.

The beautiful blonde offered a slight wink. "Don't you worry. It just so happens...that a ferry was left at the dock. It turns out that I'm a fairly quick study at sailing. It's a good thing that you are so generous Director, otherwise, I was planning to sail towards Hong Kong and hope for the best," she chortled as she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Ahhh! I have to go. I have to make sure we're on course and I promised a bedtime story! I'll be in touch shortly!" Miranda exclaimed as she waved at the screen before visibly jogging towards an adjacent door.

The heavyset Director chuckled as he cut his connection, closing his laptop and leaning back in his chair and closing his eyes. "Despite her unmatched intelligence, it is clear she is eccentric in her own way. In some ways she is every bit the ditzy blonde she appears to be but in others, she is a clear genius. It will be interesting to see how well she will fit with the rest of the Institute..." He admitted to himself out loud. "Cloning... this could change everything..."

Seriozha sat back up in his desk, pulling out a small gold pocket watch from his breast pocket, flicking it open and staring at the picture inside. It was a small photograph, of Seriozha and a small, green-haired girl that looked quite a lot like him. She clearly was no older than 6 at the time of the photo. "My dear little Sasha, don't you worry. I will create a world where you will never be hurt again."

However, unnoticed by the Director in the air vent above him, was a large bird holding a walkie talkie in its beak.

* * *

**4:09 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 1**

**Rec Room**

The Rec Room, situated in between the male and female dorms and next to the cafeteria, was the most casual room within the compound, yet was still impressive in its own right. Designed to provide the Institute's occupants with every form of entertainment, it had a blackjack and pool table, several antique arcade games, TVs with many gaming consoles, and even a music stage.

However, the rooms lone occupant was situated at the foot of an air vent, holding a walkie talkie, listening intently. The boy giggled uncontrollably as a black bird emerged from within the vent, dropping the item in its beak as it perched itself on top of his head.

"Muahaha! Excellent work Corvo!" The red-eyed, blue-haired boy laughed. His strange attire certainly stuck out, wearing a dark orange silk long-sleeved dress shirt with black bats, red sharp vampire teeth, grey ghosts with black eyes and blue pumpkins with yellow eyes patterned all over his shirt, and a velvet red black button-up waistcoat over his shirt.

The odd boy reached into his pocket to pull out small seeds, feeding them to the black bird. "We sure got some interesting info out of that geezer. It was hard to hear, but a new geneticist seems to be on the horizon here…"

"Kagemaru, what are you doing? Spying on people in the vents again?" A robotic female voice behind him asked, cutting him off. The Perfect Phobologist whipped around to face a small girl in a wheelchair. Despite her extremely small stature, the girl was 32 years old, and her attire consisted of a cream-colored v-neck sweater, white dress shirt and a black necktie, a gray pencil skirt that reached down her thighs, and a dark brown trench-coat that came down to her knees.

"Hehe, you know me so well already, Ayeka!" Kagemaru replied, not deterred in the slightest. "This time I got a big score, Corvo managed to make his way to the old man's office! I got some juicy info, if ya want to hear it!"

"Old man? Do you mean the Director? And of course, I don't want to know! That is a gross invasion of privacy!" The Perfect Epidemiologist replied after a moment, typing her response onto a keyboard on her wheelchair. Kagemaru, along with most others in the Institute, had long since grown used to the mute's delayed responses. He wouldn't lie to himself, in that he was curious as to what caused her to be both mute and wheelchair-bound. He certainly always noticed the way she always moved around the scarf that covered her lower face.

"Aw, c'mon! Don't tell me you're not curious! After all, we may soon have a new colleague within our midst!" Kagemaru cackled excitedly. "Ohhh, I bet she'll be a great source of study for my research! She's coming from Hora Island after all!"

"Stop telling me!" The small girl whined, trying but failing to sound disinterested. "Um, just out of curiosity on an unrelated note, what's her talent?"

The Perfect Phobologist gave her a toothy grin, reaching up to his head and petting Corvo. "Heh, Geneticist, if I heard right. Makes sense, that fancy lab up there made it obvious the old fart was aiming for someone to fill it up!" Kagemaru put his hands behind his head curiously. "So, now it's only fair you let me in on where you're headed, Ayeka."

Ayeka paused, tapping her fingers on her armrest in thought, before typing out her response. "I know she asked to be left alone, but I was on my way to see if I could help Fuka with anything. She has shut away herself in our lab. I was gonna offer her some cookies, I know she has a sweet tooth!" The Epidemiologist gestured to the side of her wheelchair, and Kagemaru was able to notice the small plate of cookies that rested on a mini table.

"Ahaha, well good luck with that! Little miss bluelocks won't talk to anyone. Though then again, she seems to at least tolerate you, if only because she has to!"

"At least try to show some compassion!" Ayeka pouted, shaking her head as she began to leave. "And make sure to not spy on anyone else. I'm getting sick of trying to reign in your antics!" She whined.

As Kagemaru watched her leave, a dark shadow passed over his face as he giggled.

"Muhahaha! I'll find a way to push her buttons, just you wait!"

* * *

**4:57 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 2**

**Disease and Containment Lab**

The Disease and Containment Lab was by far the most dangerous room in the entire compound. Housing countless rows of foreign vials and instruments containing deadly diseases and viruses, a hazmat suit was mandatory for any who entered the regulated lab.

Currently, a small woman with blue hair and red eyes was hard at work, leaning over and carefully examining a petri dish under a microscope.

"Hm, interesting…" The woman muttered, turning a knob on the microscope and squinting her eyes. "This is…"

"Fuka!"

Startled, the Perfect Virologist jumped, turning to face the small girl that addressed her. By now Fuka had long grown used to the sight of the wheelchair-bound Akeya coming into their shared lab in a giant plastic bubble. Since she, unfortunately, could not put on a radiation suit, this was the hastily crafted alternative.

"Oh, hello Ayeka," The red-eyed woman greeted stiffly, quickly going back to her work. "I assume you're here to see my progress? I would be happy to catch you up to speed."

"That's not why I'm here and you know it-"

"Well, my studies into how Kuru works has yielded some interesting results." The Virologist cut in as if she never heard her. "If we can reverse engineer it and crack its degenerative brain properties, we may yet be able to do two completely different things… either find a way to have the brain survive outside the human body, or create real life zombies. The possibilities are quite intriguing!"

"I see, that's great…" Ayeka replied hesitantly, pausing a moment before typing again into her keyboard. "Fuka, you can't just throw yourself into your work and pretend everything is alright. We're all worried about our families, and I know you miss your husband, but-"

The Virologist sucked in a deep breath, shutting her eyes and trembling as she stepped away from the microscope. "Then what am I supposed to do?!" She choked out lowly. "I lost my husband, my son god only knows where, and my nephew is cooped up in Hope's Peak, which I'm sure is a ticking time bomb at this point."

"That's not true! Just because you don't know where your son is, does not mean he's dead."

"Exactly. I don't know where he is. Though because of this damn tragedy, he's probably dead. I won't hold myself out to any hope of being happy. Not anymore. And I'm the one who abandoned him to chase my career." Fuka responded miserably.

Ayeka trembled slightly, thinking for a second before mustering a response. "What do you have against having hope?"

The blue-haired woman paused, shaking her head as she made towards the exit of the lab, with Ayeka slowly on her trail. They exited, and as Fuka began to pull off her hazmat suit, she was beginning to wonder if her colleague was going to ignore her, before finally, Fuka wiped the stray tears from her eyes, looking away.

"While I have nothing against happiness and hope, I have found that if I chase them, it only leads to misery." She replied quietly. "Ayeka, you're a wonderful girl, and I admire you greatly. Despite your condition, you never let anyone get to you, and you always try to help others. Please, never change." Readjusting the glasses on her face, Fuka composed herself as she began to leave. "I think I'll be heading to bed early, I'm not feeling quite so well."

Unable to find a response to that, the Epidemiologist watched silently as Fuka left for her room.

* * *

**6:23 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 3**

**Insecta Lab**

The third floor of the Chernobyl Institute was comprised of 4 important labs, the Animalia Lab, Insecta Lab, Aves Lab, and lastly yet most importantly, the Agriculture Lab.

The Insecta Lab contained a state of the art environment for practically every single known species of insect and arthropod creatures known to mankind. The circular room contained countless glass tanks, shelves, bios, and in a few cases, even large, man-made simulated environments. To the untrained eye, these tanks and their differences would seem insignificant and unrecognizable. But to the one occupant in the room, that was not the case.

When someone first steps into the Insecta Lab, above the soft buzz of the specimens, what sounded like the singing and humming of young girl dominated the space. Every once in awhile her songs would be interrupted by giggling and a gasp of air one could almost mistake for a moan. Currently, the Perfect Entomologist happily spun in her chair letting her forest green hair flow freely. "This is great isn't it, Arcelio? The cute little bumbly bees are taking to the changes perfectly!" the woman explained to the large millipede she held up above her head. She let it go and the bug wasted no time scurrying down her forearm, over her sweater and settled along her shoulders and neck, eliciting a giggle from Azra the whole way.

Azra was quickly interrupted by the sound of a man clearing his throat, alerting the Entomologist's attention to the door, where a crimson-haired man in his early forties was awkwardly standing, clutching a small note in his hand. His bright red dress shirt made him easily stand out, even among the other Perfects.

"Seriously woman, that's creepy as hell. You can at least try to act a bit more professional." Ranze Ikeru grumbled, shivering and clutching his lab coat, approaching Azra to hand her the sealed envelope. "I'm just here to deliver this message from our green haired overlord himself." He explained.

"Oh, don't be such a stick in the mud, Ranze," she replied as she scooted her chair closer to close the distance. "So a message from the director, huh? Neat!" Azra cheered as she tore open the letter. Her dark brown eyes quickly looked over the contents taking it all in.

She shot up from her chair, causing her white lab coat that was laid on the back slumped to the floor. The Entomologist pouted as she placed the paper on her desk. "Aww, I can't let my little babies explore the rest of the facility... He knows that my work is to make them less dangerous to humans, so I don't see what the big problem is," Azra said with a shrug.

"Yes, well, when they begin to disrupt everyone else's work, that causes problems." The Perfect Prostheticist complained. "Akuji was stung by several bees while he was sleeping a few days ago, there were several cockroaches that infested the agriculture lab, and Kline found a millipede crawling out of one of his computers yesterday morning. Seriously, did you not hear his scream? And how he was shooting you dirty looks at the party yesterday?" Ranze replied, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Well of course I did, but he's been giving me those looks since I first got here. Especially after I introduced him to Arcelio," Azra mused running a hand through her hair. She carefully lifted the giant millipede off her shoulder and cradled it in her hand. She held it up to her cheek and nuzzled against him. "In fact, I think just about everyone has. Poor baby, everyone is so mean to him and the rest of my cute little buggies."

"Ok, sure. Whatever." Ranze replied stiffly, doing his best to avoid eye contact with the giant millipede and suppressing a shudder. "Look, I'm trying to be helpful here Ms. Rosario, if you were less creepy and more.. normal, around people, perhaps you would make more friends?" The redhead offered, trying not to sound condescending despite his tone.

Azra giggled as she let the bug wiggle free and it crawled down her neck and settled back on her shoulders. "But if I was 'normal' I wouldn't have gotten a job here. Besides why would I want friends that don't support my interests? People here should be more supportive of each other than anywhere else."

"I see your point. But, do bear in mind the potential we have here. Who cares about supporting each other, when we are creating new technologies and scientific marvels. We could all get very rich, very quickly. Honestly, though, I'm starting to wonder if taking the good directors offer to come here was worth my time. My son Kurogane and I are already extremely successful!" He boasted with a smirk, pulling out his tablet. "And with this tragedy in full swing, my son is doing better and better on his profit margins, Ah, perhaps it's best to let him take the reins after all."

"Is that all you care about? Lame," The Entomologist whined with a dismissive wave. "This place is about more than just getting rich. We're supposed to be making the world better. Doing what we can to improve the lives of everyone, because we can. And hey, why not have fun, the world's going belly up outside, so we need all the joy we can find. Isn't that right, sweetie?" Azra asked stroking a few fingers against the millipede lovingly.

"Hmph, those types of... noble ideas don't exactly pay the bills, now do they?" Ranze snorted, shaking his head as he put his tablet away. "Though, I did hear an interesting rumor floating around that Seriozha is close to recruiting the world's top geneticist, or something like that. What's more, she apparently working for that man Jibo Momota at the moment! Quite sly of the director, poaching away his rival's employees." The crimson haired man turned to the nearest tank, eyeing the ginormous snake within with a somewhat apprehensive look. "Regardless, it seems that the genetics lab won't be for show much longer."

"Geneticist... she... Jibo..." Azra repeated before her eyes lit up with realization. "Miranda is coming here?! This is the best news ever! So glad she's finally getting away from that creepy guy. Heh, soon her big boobies will be mine to play with!"

"Big... boobies? What?" Ranze asked, slack-jawed, before clearing his throat and recovering. "Wait, that's not the important part here. You know this woman? Though, do keep in mind that this is just a rumor I heard from Emil, who heard from Akeya, who heard from Kagemaru, who supposedly overheard Seriozha talking on the phone with a female geneticist." The prostheticist waved his hand dismissively. "But you know by this point how Kagemaru is."

"Of course I know Miranda, I knew Jibo as well, though I haven't seen them in over a decade. I worked with them briefly back after I graduated Cape Town Institute, it's the research that got me on this place's radar," the woman explained. She smiled widely as she took her seat again. "Oh man, I really hope it's true though, I'd love to work with Miranda again."

"Well, for all our sakes I hope she's as great as you claim she is. The last thing we need is a big breasted bimbo bouncing around in a lab coat..." Ranze sighed, shaking his head. "You do seem quite fond of her. Maybe... too fond?"

Azra turned to look at the man as she crossed one leg over the other. "How could I not be? She was such a sweetheart, and she definitely knows her stuff. Though you may not like her, she isn't constantly thinking of how to make money off everything."

"Now now, I never said I didn't like her." Ranze tried to defend himself diplomatically. "I was just expressing that it would be nice to have another person around here with a degree of professionalism. I just expected more of some of my colleagues here, after all, some of them sorely disappoint me."

"Sounds like that's your problem to me. This Institute only selected the best, and some of us aren't driven by making a buck. We're driven by our... passions," Azra mused. She began another round of giggling as the millipede began skittering off her shoulders and down across jet exposed stomach.

"And I don't even want to begin to know what those so-called 'passions' of yours are..." The Perfect Prostheticist frowned, shooting her another disgusted look. "Is that thing poisonous? You know what, I don't even want to know..." Ranze sighed, rubbing his forehead with his hands. "So goddamn creepy..."

The woman let out a few more snickers as she eyed the man. "Aww, you think seeing a woman happy and satisfied is creepy? Your poor wife..."

Ranze's face contorted into a mixture of shock, hurt, and fury. "This conversation is over, we've gotten off track as it is." He turned to leave, before stopping at the door. "Just make sure you keep your bugs inside the lab, Azra."

"Fine, but I better not get blamed when other people go walking out of here with them," Azra explained with a wide smirk. She watched the man and the tarantula that had carefully climbed onto his back, as they made their way out of the lab.

* * *

**8:32 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 1**

**Men's Dormitory Common Room**

The men's wing of the dormitories was quite spacious, with a hallway filled with luxurious, state of the art rooms, all connected to a massive commons room. Several high end furniture pieces, cabinets, decorations dotted the commons room, a large, lit fireplace keeping the room toasty. A massive flat screen tv was mounted above it as well. Currently, it was playing a news broadcast out of Towa City, one of the few places to have not been hit by the tragedy yet.

**"And onto breaking news, further rioting within downtown Shinjuku continues to worsen, with the death toll rising." **The stony faced reporter informed. **"Ultimate Despair is once again thought to be responsible."**

Kline switched his attention back and forth from the TV screen in front of him, and the computer he had on his lap. He was currently sitting on the main couch of the common room, working on a program while he also focused on the broadcast itself with avid interest. "Mm, how barbaric. Is this the true nature of humanity?" He mused thoughtfully.

"Hngg... can you turn that thing down? I'm trying to sleep..." Muttered a soft voice from behind the Programmer. Akuji Komon stumbled into the commons room, wearing nothing but a black t-shirt and a pair of boxers, and tightly clutching a pillow. Rubbing his eyes, he looked up at the tv with a frown. "Oh, your watching the news. It's so depressing these days, why even bother?" Akuji yawned, shuffling to the couch opposite of Kline.

Almost as soon as he sat down, the two's attention was dragged back to the television.

The two watched live footage of the rioting in silence before Akuji finally spoke up.

"Hmmm, I just don't understand what the people behind all this chaos hope to accomplish. They claim its Despair, but is that really all there is?" The Perfect Geodesist moved, blinking his green eyes to stay awake. "All this just happened practically overnight too."

"Indeed, it's quite the terrible tragedy. So many young lives lost and corrupted due to the machinations of these detestable despair fanatics," Kline replied, giving a soft sigh. His eyes were briefly obscured as his laptop monitor reflected off his glasses, causing him to take his glasses off, and clean the lenses with a nearby cloth. "I honestly can't imagine being so... extreme in that way. It feels so illogical and nonsensical. Then again, I suppose that could apply to any extremist view or organization. This odd kind of Despair certainly isn't unique in that regard."

"Yeah, I suppose so," The white-haired boy shrugged apathetically. "It's so strange, the world was totally fine a year ago, now it's like everything has fallen apart. Sure, we're fortunate enough to be safe in here, but so many people aren't, and suffer every day, even our own friends and families... and for what? So some group of crazies can get their kicks?" Akuji sighed dramatically, looking over at Kline. "Hey, can you hand me that water bottle over there? It's too far and I can't reach it!" He whined, pointing to a bottle that was right next to his own couch.

Kline glanced over at the bottle of water, then back at Akuji. He gave a good-natured smile, though his brow twitched in faint annoyance. "The bottle is right in your reach, Akuji. I am your colleague, not your maid. You can get it yourself fairly easily."

He leaned back in his seat after a moment, putting his glasses back on once he'd sufficiently cleaned them. "Still, it is quite the conundrum. I suppose there's not much we can do about it though. All we can really do is be thankful for our own fortunes. I know my father and brother are out there somewhere during all this...but I try not to think about it too much. I have a... complicated relationship with them, at best."

"Fineeee..." Akuji sighed, sitting up and grabbing the bottle, downing the water quickly. "Well, once this whole disaster is said and done, maybe they can come here. I've already asked the big boss man if we could invite our families here, but he just looked at me weird and said that it was too risky to have so many people in here. So now I just gotta hope my brother and sister are safe." The Geodesist yawned a second time, slowly standing up as he began making his way back to his room. Before he went back in, he turned back to Kline, sporting the most serious expression he had dawned in awhile. "Oh, and I don't know how bad your relationship with your family is, but you should try to reach out to them, especially if they love you. Don't take it for granted... or do, I don't really care. Have a good night, Kline." The white-haired boy shrugged, slamming the door to his room.

Kline stared back at where Akuji was, a surprised and thoughtful look flashing across his face before he turned his attention back to the television. A moment later he picked up where he left off, crafting a new program on his computer, while he watched the broadcast at the same time.


	3. Prologue: Welcome to the Institute Act 3

**AN: And here it is, the second and final part of the prologue! Now we can really get down to the fun stuff...**

**First, I want to thank everyone who submitted OCs. As I said in the discord, I had to turn down many good apps simply because I ran out of room. It makes me so happy that we even reached 35 submissions in the first place! So thank you, truly!**

**Second, I want to thank Petty and Magus for writing their characters this chapter. I appreciate the help!**

**3/4/20 Rewrite:** **Changes have been made to fit the new canon, and some errors have been fixed.**

* * *

**November 14th, 2017**

**10:46 AM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 2**

**Mathematics Lab**

The Mathematics Lab on the second floor was extremely spacious, containing every piece of tool and equipment a mathematician would need, including high-grade calculation computers, probability simulators, and countless books and scientific journals.

A tall, dark-skinned man with bright pink eyes brown blonde hair in a ponytail spun in his seat with a loud, dramatic sigh. He wore a white-collar shirt with gold buttons, left unbuttoned to the midway point exposing his chest, along with an expensive-looking teal suit jacket with white pinstripes, worn open and with the right sleeve rolled up to the elbow exposing his arm. He finished his look with well-fitted pair of black pants, and a pair of black dress shoes.

"Hey, big guy Kazu, whatcha doin'?" He asked, leaning over and looking over his shoulder.

"Hmm? Oh, my apologies, Leo, I didn't hear you come in," the giant man said. Kazu set down his pencil as he stood up and turned to face the other. He ran a large hand through his slicked-back blond hair as he looked down at the Statistician with a small smile. "I have been getting a few journals prepared, I thought I should have a few ready for each of our fellow Perfects for my own notes."

"Why bother though? None of them besides Song will understand a word we say. It's a waste of time," Leo snorted, shaking his head. "Hey, how about instead of working your life away up here, we instead head down the rec room and grab a drink, yeah?" He suggested slyly, nudging the Number Theorist good-naturedly.

"A bad idea, unless you want the Director to have your head. He wants a rundown on our latest project by the end of the day," a curt female voice spoke up. The two mathematicians turned to the sliding glass door to see a very young, violet-eyed girl walk in. Her lilac hair was straight and traditional, and she adjusted the dark grey military jacket that was under her lab coat.

"Leo, if you focused as much on slacking off and partying as you did your work, we would already be done for the day," Song sighed, setting down a stack of files on her personal desk.

"Hey now, don't be like that beautiful~" Leo purred, winking at her. "You're so serious, you should learn to relax! Is it because of your Chinese parents or something?"

Kazu sighed as he turned back to load his various journals back into his bag. "Don't go making jokes like that, Leo," Kazu said with a slight frown. "Anyways, we shouldn't stress our workload, Song. Not all of us have the same work habits, so we just need to find a rhythm that works for all of us."

"Yeah, that's the attitude to have! That old man chose us because we're all the best of the best, right?" Leo agreed good-naturedly, leaning back in his chair. "So long as we do what's required of us, we're on our way to easy street!"

"Careful. Overconfidence leads to carelessness. And carelessness leads to failure. And it has been made clear that failure here is unacceptable. Considering the state of the world, we are quite fortunate and blessed to be safe. If Seriozha is to be believed, our contributions could change and save the world..." Song trailed off thoughtfully.

"I must say, it's quite tough having to be the middle man in this group. You both make good points after all," the giant mused as he stroked his beard. He looked between the two with a tired smile. "Our work is very important, it even affects the other departments. So we should rush our work, but we also can slack off on it."

"Right! So whaddaya say we head down to the rec room? You should join us Song, you look like you could use a bit of relaxing!" The Statistician suggested, resting his hand on her shoulder. "I'll teach you how to play pool..."

"I'll pass, thank you very much. I was on my way to check-in with the Director anyways," Song replied curtly, roughly shrugging Leo's hand away. "I'll be in touch with you two later. I wish you luck dealing with Leo, Kazu. I don't pity you."

Kazu and Leo watched silently as she left the room without another word.

"Man, she's a party pooper, isn't she?" Leo laughed, unfazed by Song's rejection.

"She only graduated a short while before coming here, I'm sure she's just used to a very work centered world," the Theorist explained with a shrug. He walked up and playfully gave the other man a punch on the arm. "All right, let's take a break for now. I'd love to get a chance to talk to some of the others as well."

Leo seemed slightly surprised, before breaking out into a large grin. "My man! We're gonna have a blast, just you wait. Who knows, maybe I'll even help you pick up a chick, yeah?"

Upon seeing Kazu's flustered face, the large statistician broke out into laughter. "Oh, you're too easy to tease, man. Relax!"

The Theorist awkwardly rubbed his arm as he tried to calm his nerves. "L-Look, I'm just not that interested in getting into my love life.."

"Hey, don't be shy! Plenty of ladies and even dudes would want a piece of you, you're a hunk!" Leo told him encouragingly. "Hell, I wouldn't mind a piece of that action myself!" He teased as he led a beet red Kazu out the door. "So, the first tip to stealing someone's heart..."

* * *

**12:11 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 1**

**Cafeteria**

The cafeteria was situated right next to the recreation room and seemed more like a high-class restaurant than a research building cafeteria. It housed a massive state of the art culinary kitchen, and the dining hall looked like something out of a fantasy book, having countless ornate tables and expensive chairs. A large diamond and gold chandelier hung above the hall. Classical music played softly in the background, providing a very relaxing atmosphere.

A wavy, brown-haired girl in a manual wheelchair looked over several of the items in the kitchen in thought with her amber-colored eyes, before finally settling on selecting a platter assortment of sandwiches and a beverage selection of tea, water, and most importantly for this occasion… coffee. Lots and lots of coffee. While she herself hated the beverage, it was essential for the people she would be having lunch with.

As Iris Murdoch rolled out of the kitchen and into the elegant dining hall, she sighed in frustration as she eyed the table that her two lunch guests were sitting… no, correction, napping.

"Oi! You dunces, wake up!" Iris growled, rolling over and lightly slapping the two upside the head.

"Mmm, Iris whyyyy…" Akuji moaned, raising his head up from his pillow. The black-haired, brown-eyed Egyptian girl next to him did the same, grumbling as she rubbed her eyes.

"Ugh… where am I again? Ohhh, hi Iris…" she mumbled shyly, turning away. "Wait, why am I here again?"

"Because Shadya, we're here to talk about you two's work ethic!" The mycologist chided, setting down the food and drinks. "In fact, it was Fuka and Ayeka who came to me and said that you are always falling asleep and never doing your half of the work. We're all a team, and we all have to pull our weight and try our best!"

"Then why didn't you bring Leo here? He's just as bad!" Akuji whined, picking up a small sandwich and nibbling on it.

"I was gonna, but Kazu caught up to me and said he'd handle it, and I gladly accepted. Dealing with you two is enough of a time waster to my own work as it is, this should be the Director's job, but nooo, I'm the one who needs to step up around here!" Iris sighed, pouring herself a glass of tea. "Either of you mates want coffee? It'd do ya both some good."

"No thanks, I hate coffee."

"Hmm, so do I."

Iris gritted her teeth. "Seriously? Does everyone hate coffee in this place? Eh, guess I have no right to complain…" She sighed, pouring them both some water. "So ya need to tell me, why do you both nap so much, and not sleep at normal times?"

"Hm, I just wanna conserve energy. It's not really any of your business anyways. Some of us like to work at night too." Akuji pointed out, rubbing his head against his pillow. "Besides, I still fill my work quota."

"Normal times?" Shadya muttered as she let her glasses tip downward. She pouted slightly as she locked eyes with the Mycologist. "During the so called 'normal times' is when my mind is the most active, so it's better this way."

"Hey, I just asked a question!" Iris replied, raising her hands up defensively. "But, you know that's not healthy, right? Write it down and go back to sleep!" She turned and eyed the Geodesist, narrowing her eyes. "Speaking of healthy, Akuji you look like a skeleton! You need to eat more!" The mycologist then proceeded to shove several small tea cakes onto his plate. "Here, eat this!"

For the first time, Akuji looked visibly wary. "No, that's alright, I'm eating enough, I swear! Besides, we're here to talk about our work ethic!"

'He changed the subject' Iris mused to herself, before clearing her throat. "Oi, Shadya. How's your work coming along? Do you like Fuka and Ayeka alright?"

"They're fine, but I can still tell that they are starting to get frustrated with me," the Pathologist explained with a sign as she crumpled up her pillow.

"Eh, I wouldn't take it too personally. That Fuka don't seem to get along with anyone, except for maybe Ayeka. As for the latter... she's too busy flying around on that fancy wheelchair of hers, but maybe you should try talking to her? She seems nice!" Iris suggested, tapping the side of her wheelchair thoughtfully. "What about you Akuji?"

The geodesist frowned, scratching the back of his head. "Well, I don't have as much in common with many of the others, but Ysandro won't leave me alone..." he mumbled.

"See? There ya go!" Iris smiled, clapping her hands together. "So, can ya both try a little harder?"

Akuji and Shadya looked at each other for a moment, before the former smiled lowly. "Maybe, but you in return have to learn to relax a little."

"E-eh? What?" The mycologist asked in confusion.

Shadya nodded as she straightened out her pillow. "Look I don't mind trying to work at changing a little, but that doesn't mean everyone else doesn't have something to change. You are doing this because it's your nature to police everyone else who isn't a workaholic like you."

"Hey, I'll have ya both know that I get a solid 4 hours of sleep each night! A-and just yesterday, I sat down with Kagemaru and Ranze for 5 minutes at dinner! And, uh..." Iris trailed off, rubbing the back of her head with a sigh. "Look, I just like working, ok? But I'll try to 'relax' more if it means you two will work a bit harder and socialize more."

"Heh, it's a deal then..." Akuji snickered.

"Yeah... I can prove my place here," Shadya said softly as she reached out for a sandwich to start nibbling on.

"Aye, then it's a deal!" Iris smiled, picking up some food for herself. "Let's make sure that our futures here will be bright!"

* * *

**1:37 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 4**

**Medical Lab**

The psychology room of the Medical Lab was a far cry from many of the other labs within The Institute, as it looked much like a standard living room. A fireplace warmed up the office, several couches, rugs, and coffee tables decorated the room, and a large wooden desk sat in the center. The wallpaper was brightly colored, and humorously, many cliche inspirational posters had been hung up by the lab's primary occupant.

A black-haired girl with red eyes cleared her throat as she pulled two files out from her desk. She adjusted her green turtleneck and smoothed out her skirt as she sat on the couch across from a brown-haired, blue-eyed boy with a dopey smile on his face. The Perfect Psychologist opened one of the files, returning the boy's smile.

"So, let's see here..." Tomoe Kagami mused as she read the file. "Ysandro De La Cruz, the Perfect Animal Behaviorist. Born February 16th in Columbia. Is that correct?"

"Yup yup! Sure is!" Ysandro laughed, swinging his legs like a child. "And you didn't forget about Mini-pup, did you?"

Tomoe shook her head patiently, long having grown used to the boys antics. "No, of course, I haven't. Hello, Minino." She said, looking down at the black and tanned German Shepard dog that lounged lazily below Ysandro's feet. The dog didn't acknowledge her in any way.

"Well, at any rate, as soon as Azra gets here, we can begin," the psychiatrist informed Ysandro.

"So, what's this for? I'm already bored!" The blue-eyed boy whined.

"Oh, it's nothing to worry about. The Director simply asked me to give a psychological evaluation to everyone here. And considering the mental state of a few people in here, I can see why... many of them are scarred by the recent events in the world one way or the other..." Tomoe admitted. "You and Azra are the last two I need to do, and I figured having both of you here would kill two birds with one stone."

"Huh? But why would you kill two birds? What did the birds ever do to you?!" Ysandro cried out, his eyes watering. "Those birds could have had families!"

"Aww don't be sad, Ysandro. There aren't any real birdies being killed, at least I hope not," the Entomologist called out as she appeared at the. As always her giant millipede laid across her shoulders, slightly coiling around the woman. "Sorry I kept you waiting, Tomoe. Arcelio here was just being so playful that I lost track of time."

"That's quite all right, dear," Tomoe smiled understandingly. "Please, take a seat. Would either of you like some tea or coffee? Hot chocolate perhaps?" She asked politely.

"Ohhh, I'd like hot chocolate, please! With whipped cream and sprinkles on top!" Ysandro cheered.

"Hell yeah, same for me!" Azra beamed as she sat down next to the Animal Behaviorist. "You know, I've really been looking forward to getting a chance to meet with you, Tomoe."

"Really? Is that so?" The red-eyed woman responded in surprise, as she got up and began pouring the two a cup of hot chocolate. "That is most certainly not a sentence someone in my profession is used to hearing." She joked, returning as she handed the two their cups. "Is there any particular reason why?"

A sly smile crept along Azra's face as she set her cup down beside her. "Oh, it's not because of you being a psychiatrist or anything like that. It's actually because you have got some nice big boobies, and I just have to get a chance to feel them!" the Entomologist boldly stated with a wink.

"I-I'm sorry?" Tomoe sputtered, her face going beet red as she covered her breasts automatically, before taking a deep breath and recovering. "Azra, that is not an appropriate thing to say!" She chided, attempting to sound stern.

"Eh? Am I missing something? Are Tomoe's boobs important?" Ysandro asked cluelessly.

"Well, I think they are important! And you don't have to be embarrassed about them at all," the green-haired woman mused before taking a sip of her hot chocolate.

"I see, I see..." Tomoe noted as she wrote something down in Azra's file. "Tell me, when did you start having an obsession with female breasts?" Tomoe inquired, having gone back to her analytical attitude.

"It's not just female breasts, of course, it can be anyone really. Like, have you seen some of the guys here like Leo or Kazu? Their boobies are just as awesome as yours," happily explained. She gently stroked the larger millipede as she smiled towards the other woman.

"Ohhh, yeah! Leo and Kazu are super handsome!" Ysandro piped up. "But I'm not exactly sure they're my type."

"What is happening right now?" Tomoe deadpanned, shaking her head. "We're getting off-topic you two. So, I'm going to ask a set of questions, and I would like you two to answer as best you can. First question: what major person and/or event in your life has shaped you into the person you are today?"

Azra's eyes lit up as she continued petting the large insect that had begun moving its way down her arm. "Well that would be an easy one, it'd be when Auntie Maya adopted me. It's thanks to her I even got to go to school in the first place!"

"Ohhh, for me it's big bro Cisco! He likes animals too!" Ysandro clapped his hands together with a giggle. "One time, my brother went camping and he found a package of expired hot dogs. He put it on a spitroast and when it was cooked, it has attracted many animals. Including a bear. So Cisco was chased by them until he crashed a wedding and the bear ate the six-tier cake!"

"...Well, alrighty then..." Tomoe blinked, bewildered as she hastily scribbled down notes in their files. "So next question... tell me drives you, and why did you decide to come to the Institute in the first place?"

"Because I wanted to be the mother of a brand new generation of awesome buggies!" Azra boasted as she hoisted Arcelio up into the air. The bug frantically scurried back onto the Entomologist's shoulder, tickling her the whole way, eliciting a torrent of giggles from her.

"Ohhh, I'm kinda the same, but with like, animals!" Ysandro offered, smiling as he began to pet Minino, who simply growled at him in annoyance and tried to bite his hand. "Ouch! Sheesh Mini-pup, don't bite me!"

"Excellent. Thank you." Tomoe wrote down their answers, pausing as she eyed the next question with a sigh. "This last question... may seem a bit odd, and I would like to point out that the Director is the one who wrote these questions... but please do answer to the best of your ability.

The psychologist paused, before asking. "What is your greatest desire?"

"I mean, it's like I just said! I want to raise, like the best bees this world ever had! Able to survive any condition," the other woman explained as she traced over the tattoo of a bee in her stomach.

"Mmm, I'm not quite as sure..." Ysandro frowned, tapping his foot in thought. "I would say I wanna help and train animals all over the earth, but is that even possible?"

"I... don't think so..." Tomoe chuckled, shaking her head as she closed the files. "That question is rather odd and vague, isn't it? There are just some wishes and dreams that cannot be granted, no matter how much we wish them so," She sighed. "At any rate, thank you for your time. Do you have any other questions?"

Azra rose from her seat as she started walking around the office. A framed picture sitting on the Perfect Psychologist's desk captured her interest first as she started studying it. "Ooh, who's this shorty with you? He looks pretty young, do you have a kid?"

The Perfect Psychologist blushed, her face turning crimson red. "Oh, I do have two kids, a boy and a girl... however that's my husband, actually."

"Eh? But he's so short! Is he a kid?" Ysandro giggled.

"No, Nagato is 36, actually. But... I have not seen him in years. I do hope he's doing alright." Tomoe said softly.

"Aw, I'm sorry to hear that, Tomoe. Even if this wasn't a harsh world right now, it can still be so tough to be separate from our loved ones," Azra said softly. She set the picture back down and carefully pulled the other woman into a gentle hug.

"Mhm! I bet he's doing just fine! Your kids too!" Ysandro agreed, patting Tomoe on the shoulder. "And I'm sure Mini-pup thinks so too!"

Tomoe chuckled, lowering her head. "Thank you. Ha, usually it is the psychiatrist's job to comfort their patients, and yet here we are!" She freed herself from Azra's vicelike grip. "Before you leave, would you two like a lollipop?" She asked with a smile, innocently holding out a bag filled with various colored lollipops.

"You don't have to thank me. We are all partners here after all, so we should be looking out for each other," the Entomologist replied before she looked over the bag presented to her. "Well, of course, I want one!" Azra smirked as she fished out an orange lollipop and after unwrapping it, popped it in her mouth.

"Me too! Me too!" Ysandro cheered, grabbing a blue one. He turned to Azra, a bright smile on his face. "Hey, I've been meaning to see some of your insects. I usually only deal with mammals, but I think I'd like to see something new!" He told her, the enthusiasm clear in his voice.

Azra grinned as she gave the Behaviorist a thumbs up. "Then what are we doing still standing here? Let's go find some buggies to play with! Nice talking to you, Tomoe, my door is always open if you want to come talk."

"Am I the psychiatrist here, or you?" Tomoe chuckled as she watched the two leave, sitting down at her desk in thought. She pulled out their files, looking at her previous notes about them. She smiled as she wrote down her approval for the Director.

"Maybe there's some hope for this world after all..." She mused, pushing her glasses up on her face.

* * *

**3:05 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 2**

**Technology Lab**

The Technology Lab was among, if not the, most advanced technological labs in the entire world. Countless high-end computers and electronics filled the room, many of which had never been released to the public yet. In the center of the room was a massive device, with several pods connected to it. To the right was a control panel with a security lock on it.

A flamboyant man with bright purple and pink hair and fuchsia eyes sat tapping away on his Genesis Pad, eyeing the control panel in thought. He surprisingly wore no shirt, exposing his fit and lithe build. Ikouze Kurieita frowned, looking back at his colleague that sat behind him.

"Hey, Kline... are you almost finished with that code? The Director is going to be here any minute. We have to have this finished!"

Kline glanced over at Ikouze, raising an eyebrow before replying, "No worries, I'm just about done. How are you coming on your end?"

Ikouze hummed, tapping his Pad in thought. "I'm done. I've hooked the AI up to the control panel. See this baby right here?" The AI Specialist proudly showed Kline a giant black box-like device. "It detects and reads all types of artificial intelligence, and hooks them up to the entire Institute mainframe! Even an AI in a physical body can make use of this! Like that Keebo guy in Hope's Peak Academy." Ikouze rested it on the desk in front of him. "Isn't that cool or what?"

"Is that so?" Kline questioned, gazing at the object in question. "Fascinating! I'd love to see this thing in action. The mind boggles at the possibilities."

"I know right? After we show this bad boy we're making to the Director, I'll show you how it works. You're probably the only one who would even come close to understanding it anyways!" Ikouze laughed. "Too bad that Keebo guy and Professor Idabashi aren't here. Professor Idabashi is my idol, he seems like a pretty cool guy. And he made the world's most lifelike AI! I'd pay to learn his secrets... ah, I'm getting off-topic. Sorry."

"Ah yes, Professor Idabashi. I had the chance to meet him once at a conference. He is a most _fascinating_ man," Kline replied with a slight smile. "That was after Keebo had gone to Japan, however. I never had the chance to meet his creation in person. Still, he is a brilliant man, I shall say that much. And thank you, Ikouze. I would her much appreciate seeing how this device works!"

Kline paused, glancing over curiously at him as he went on. "I will say, I didn't think such technology was currently possible. However, did you come up with it?"

"Aw man, I'm totally jealous!" Ikouze pouted, folding his arms over his bare chest. "And hm, uh... well, I'm not exactly sure why I made it, except it goes well together with... _another_ project of mine. One that I didn't bring with me, sadly." The fuchsia eyed boy sat back down, shaking his head. "Ah, we're getting off track, aren't we? We can chat about this later. So... how about we come up with a name for this AI we're making? Did you program the voice to be a boy or a girl?"

Kline raised an eyebrow at that but didn't push the subject any further. "Yes... I gave it a feminine voice. I've taken to calling her Eris, myself. How's that sound?"

Ikouze crinkled his face for a moment, before choosing his next words carefully. "Eris? Isn't that the Greek goddess of discord and strife? That's depressing. I'm vetoing it." The AI Specialist had a tone in his voice that left no room for discussion. "Oh, I got it! How about Curie? You know, named after Madam Curie, the first scientist to discover and work with radiation and isotopes? I think its fitting, considering where we are. What do you think?"

"Well, I suppose it's fine enough," Kline replied after a moment, shrugging. "It is rather fitting, all things considered. Curie it is then, I suppose."

"Sweet! Well, looks like we have everything rea-"

Ikouze was cut off, the glass door slid open as Seriozha walked into the room, his hands behind his back as he eyed the two prodigies curiously. "Gentlemen. I hope you have something interesting to show me."

"Sir!" Ikouze squeaked, jumping to his feet and giving the green-haired Director a polite salute.

Kline stood up a half-second later, before politely nodding his head at the Director. "Director Seriozha, good timing. We just finished the final touches on the AI system, I'm sure you'll be more than pleased with it."

"Excellent work. I look forward to seeing it." He turned back to face Ikouze, his face scrunching in distaste as he picked up the purple-haired boy's lab coat, throwing it at him. "Young man, put on a shirt. I have no time for barbarians in my Institution, and I don't want to have to make you yet another ID badge again because you lost it."

"Ah! Apologies sir! I'm not even sure how I got shirtless!" Ikouze wailed, hastily putting his lab coat back on. "It won't happen again!"

"That's what you said yesterday..." The Director mumbled under his breath, before shaking his head. "Nevermind that. I wish to see the AI."

Kline nodded again and reached over to tap at his keyboard a few times. A moment later the screen of his laptop flickered before the green silhouette of a woman appeared on it. "Curie is ready and waiting for you, sir."

"Yup! All you have to do is identify yourself as the main administrator." The AI specialist explained, shrugging on his lab coat. "It will then respond to your voice and yours only... well, and the Vice Director, if he was here..." Ikouze trailed off.

"I see..." Seriozha said curiously. "Curie, I am Seriozha Raymond-Reddington, the Director. You are to respond to me and me alone. You'll be carrying out matters that range from trivial things such as getting me coffee, to protecting the Institute from outside threats if need be. Understood?"

Curie blinked, her smile unwavering. **"Acknowledged Director. Standing by and awaiting orders."**

The green-haired man smirked in satisfaction, turning back to the two Perfects. "Well done you two. And you made sure it cannot become self-aware?"

"Of course, Director. There's little threat of such a thing occurring. And if need be, we do have the capacity to wipe her memories and 'reset' her, though it'd take some additional work," Kline replied. "Although I took the liberty of installing some special code. Believe me, if there's even a hint that something is wrong with Curie, I'll be the first to know."

"Excellent work you two." Seriozha smiled. "Take the rest of the day off. You gentlemen have earned it."

"Ah, we're glad you like it, sir!" Ikouze replied enthusiastically. "So... does this mean I can continue working on the Neo World Program? I believe I'm close to gaining full access to it." He replied, gesturing to the massive machine with the pods hooked up to it.

"Yes, yes. If that is what you most desire. Though I do not see what purpose it would serve us. Now, if you'll excuse me, I think I'll order some tea."

The Director turned to the AI. "Curie, would you please get me a cup of ginger tea please?"

**"Affirmative, Director."**

A moment later, a small drone flew in, a cup in its grasp. Seriozha took the cup in satisfaction. "A toast, gentlemen." He took a sip, instantly spitting it out with a stutter. "This... this is coffee! I hate coffee!" He growled. "Ikouze, Kline... what is this?"

"Well, that's quite odd," Kline stated, furrowing his brow. He stared back down at his computer with a considering expression, biting at his lip for a moment before he continued. "It's likely nothing significant, Director. Perhaps a small glitch or bug. Perhaps its internal censors mislabeled the coffee or something along those lines. Either way, it shouldn't be hard to patch out. It might even fix itself: I made sure that its learning algorithms were highly advanced, so it should take note from mistakes like this, and avert them a second time around. Perhaps try it again, Director?"

"Very well." Seriozha sighed. "Curie, get me some ginger tea, please. Again."

A moment later, the drone returned with yet another cup. This time, Seriozha hesitated before taking another sip, this time nodding in acceptance. "This is black cherry tea, not ginger. But it will be close enough for now."

"We're sorry sir, you know how finicky these sorts of things can be. We'll be sure to iron out the bugs soon," Ikouze assured him. "We know you expect nothing but perfection from us. We'll be sure to deliver."

"Indeed. Believe me, Director, this will all be smoothed over soon enough," Kline echoed, giving an awkward little smile. "In the meantime, Curie should serve you well. Just make sure to take good care of her."

"I'll be sure to do so. Now if you gentlemen will excuse me, I'll be heading back to my office." The green-haired Director gave them a curt nod, before exiting.

"Well, that's that I suppose. I'm gonna get something to eat, see ya later Kline." Ikouze waved, as he too walked out.

"Well then, this was certainly interesting." Kline chuckled as he went back to his work.

* * *

**4:54 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 4**

**Director's Office**

Seriozha sat on his balcony overlooking the Institute's courtyard, sipping a cup of tea. He smiled as he watched Azra energetically jump around Tomoe, the Psychiatrist scribbling down notes into her notebook.

Despite the setbacks, things were going along perfectly. All of the projects and ideas he had presented to the Perfects to accomplish had been met with great enthusiasm, and with the Curie Interface up and running, the security within the Institute was now flawless.

**"Director, you have an incoming video call."**

The green-haired director was snapped out of his thoughts, stroking his chin. Curie would certainly take some getting used to.

"Thank you, Curie. Please answer the call and project it on the balcony TV," Seriozha responded politely, setting down his tea.

**"As you command."**

The massive TV attached to the wall suddenly blared to life, showing a young boy of about 15, with bright green hair parted down the middle, deep green-blue eyes, and a bright smile on his face. The boy raised a gloved hand, adjusting the green and gold scarf he was wearing as it flowed behind him in the wind. He wore a typical black suit with a gold tie and black dress pants.

"Ah, sir! Sorry for disrupting you, I hope you're not busy!" The green-haired boy asked apologetically.

"Worry not Lugh, you're not bothering me in the slightest," Seriozha chuckled, folding his hands in his lap as he smiled at the boy. "How goes the expedition in Britain?"

"Well, you see sir, that's why I was calling!" Lugh answered enthusiastically, resting his hands behind his head. "The team of scientists I recruited were able to break through the entrance to the Knights Templar tomb! Some of the riddles and puzzles were tough, but thankfully once we solved them there were no more traps." The green-haired boy's smile grew wider. "At first we didn't find anything of value, and even sadder, most of King Arthur's knights are not buried here, but we did find one… Sir Galahad."

"Galahad…" Seriozha mused. "I can't say I recall the name, my boy. What was he known for?"

"Sir Galahad was the illegitimate son of Sir Lancelot, and he was known for being one of the purest knights to ever exist. But even more importantly… he was known mostly as the one worthy knight who earned the Holy Grail!" Lugh informed him, bouncing in the heels of his feet excitedly.

"The Holy Grail…" The director inhaled sharply, feeling his hands shake as he quietly asked. "Did you actually find…?"

"Yes, we did! We found the Holy Grail!" The young boy shouted excitedly.

"Keep your voice down, my boy," Seriozha said sternly, yet he himself could not blame the boy for his excitement. "What have you done with it? The legends surrounding it are varied and a bit worrying."

"Oh, yeah… about that." Lugh hesitated, before shaking his head sadly. "One of the scientists touched it, and after a moment, disintegrated into ashes. We've moved it out of the tomb with a robotic drone, and nobody has touched it since. Needless to say, uh, I think the legends about a person having to be worthy to get their wish granted is true."

"Good. Make sure it stays hidden from the other scientists. You're the only one I trust." Seriozha leaned back in his chair in thought, tapping his fingers on the table.

"Sir? What are you thinking?" Lugh asked curiously.

Eventually, the green-haired director opened his eyes, looking back at Lugh. "I'll be sending the Blackstone Mercenaries to assist you in not just moving the Grail, but protecting it too. Once they arrive, you're to help them bring it to me as quickly as possible."

For the first time, Lugh's smile faltered, quickly being replaced by nervousness and apprehension. "Not that I'm questioning you sir, but are you sure that's wise? Um, the Blackstone Mercs… can you really trust them?"

Seriozha also heard the unspoken question Lugh was asking: Do you not trust me?

"I trust them as long as my bank account remains large!" The green-haired director joked before his expression turned serious. "I have done business with them for years. Einar and I have an understanding that as long as I pay them, they do whatever is asked of them. It is not about you or them. In fact, it is those scientists you took with you that you should be concerned about."

The young boy seemed surprised. "Really? You think so? They seem nice."

"That, my boy, is a habit you need to break," Seriozha warned him sternly. "You cannot just trust people and take them at face value. Do you truly think all of them are willing to share credit for the greatest archaeological discovery of the century, and will just let you have it? I think not. The Blackstone Mercs are for your protection."

"...I suppose." Lugh accepted reluctantly. "Will I be traveling with them to see you in Ukraine?"

"Of course. I do wish to discuss some things with you since you will be running my operations while I'm occupied here. That, and I do wish to see you, my boy." Seriozha told him warmly, resting his hands on his desk.

"R-really? Alright!" The young boy replied with a blush, rubbing his cheek in embarrassment. "Not sure why you chose me, I'm still really young…"

"Do not sell yourself short." The green-haired Director cut in. "I have raised you since you were young as my own son, and I trust you as one."

"I… thank you, sir," Lugh said politely, however the pride in his eyes gave him away. "If you'll excuse me, I'll start making preparations."

The video call cut off, and Seriozha hummed, leaning back in his chair thoughtfully as he made one last call.

After a few seconds, the call patched through, revealing a clean-shaven British man with a red mohawk. He was around 20 years old, however, his size and muscular body deceived most people.

"Einar. I have a job for you and your mercs." Seriozha said bluntly, not wasting any time.

Einar Barnaby, the leader of the grisled and brutally efficient Blackstone Mercenaries based out of Britain, simply smirked, taking a long drag of the cigarette he was smoking. "What have you got this time?" He said simply.

"Do you remember my protege Lugh?" When the merc leader nodded in the affirmative, he continued. "He has led a team of scientists on an expedition in your country and recovered a valuable artifact. I need you to help him escort it to me in Ukraine."

"Sounds simple and straightforward enough," Einer replied. He never was one for small talk, always straight to the point. "How much does it pay?"

"5 million in advance, 5 million after it is delivered to me, and a bonus 2 million if it is delivered to me within the week."

"Consider it done." The merc replied, taking another puff before putting out his cigarette. "And may I ask what we're helping transport?"

"No. All you need to know is that it is an artifact of high value, and neither you nor your mercs can touch it directly. All you need to do is transfer the artifact and my protege to me unharmed." Seriozha stroked his beard in thought for a moment, before sighing. "And… when you arrive at the expedition site, you'll find around a couple dozen or so scientists and researchers. Kill all of them, they cannot be trusted. Even if Lugh protests… do it. I care for the boy and his feelings, but he has a big heart, and he is too soft."

Einar let out a wolfish laugh. "And there's the ruthless order I was waiting for!" The merc's expression turned serious, and he eyed his employer in thought.

"Is something the matter?" The green-haired Director asked, clearly unnerved.

"You know, I've known you for years Seriozha. You're many different things… ruthless and pragmatic, yet charismatic and personable… It's taken some years, but I feel like I can read you fairly well now. And I have to say…" Einar leaned forward, and even though it was simply a video call, Seriozha felt himself sweat.

"You seem to care a lot for that boy. He was some nobody, and yet when his mother died you took him in. It's almost as if he's your illegitimate-"

"I'll pay you an extra 2 million to not finish that sentence," the green-haired Director said lowly.

"My, what a generous donation!" Einar chuckled. "Don't worry, your little secret is safe with me. And as a show of good faith, I'll have your job done in 3 days. See you then…"

As the video call cut out, Seriozha leaned back in his chair with a shaky breath, chewing on a fingernail.

"This will be the last job I need them for." He muttered under his breath. "Soon, everything else I'll finally be able to do myself…"

* * *

**6:33 PM**

**Chernobyl Institute, Floor 4**

**Institute Entrance Hall**

The Entrance Hall of the Institute sat up in the furthest reaches of the top floor and was the only real way in and out. There was an elevator in the Central Garden, however, this led to Tower 4 in the Chernobyl Power Plant, which was extremely irradiated and dangerous.

The Entrance Hall itself was nothing fancy and was just a simple yet large metallic hallway housing a large, vault sealed door. Access in or out via opening the door could only be authorized by the Director.

Ayeka Akemi rolled in, her large wheelchair making soft clicking noises as it rolled on the hard metal. The Perfect Epidemiologist sighed in relief, upon seeing her colleague present, staring at the vault door silently.

"Fuka, I haven't seen you all day… are you ok?"

The blue-haired Perfect turned around in surprise, adjusting the glasses on her face. "O-oh, Ayeka. Hello. I was just…" She hesitated, looking back at the door. "...thinking."

"About leaving? Or something else?" Ayeka inquired, pulling up her wheelchair next to the Virologist.

"Both, I suppose…" Fuka mused. "Many years ago, my husband and I had to make a tough choice. We decided to pursue our careers instead of settling down and raising our son. At first, we thought we were making the right choice, but it quickly felt so… hollow," she explained quietly. And then, the Tragedy broke out. We had no way of finding our son. Then as we were coming here to the Institute… my husband died." Fuka sighed, looking upward. "I'm sorry for rambling. My point is… I'm filled with so many regrets. And sometimes I wonder… If I could go back in time and do it over again…" She trailed off.

"We can't change the past," Ayeka said sternly. "Fuka, you have to let go. You can't let this consume you. Focus on the present, and who you can help right now."

"That's easier said than done," the virologist muttered. "But… I'll try my best. Thank you Ayeka."

The wheelchair-bound girl gave her a small smile. "Just glad I could help a friend."

Fuka blushed, looking away. "It's been a long time since someone has-"

Suddenly, a loud ding ran out throughout the entrance hall, startling the two girls.

"W-what was that?" Ayeka squeaked out.

"That… was the bell out front of the vault door…" Fuka said softly. "Someone's outside. Hold on."

The blue-haired woman went over to a control panel and activated a monitor and intercom to the outside.

The screen blared to life, showing a well endowed blonde-haired girl with icy blue eyes. She had on a cream-colored school uniform and a blue skirt, however, her attire was ripped and muddied and the girl herself looked exhausted.

Behind her was a middle-aged adult with cherry red hair and teal colored eyes. He wore a blue parka sweater and a checkered dress shirt. His clothes were equally tattered and ruined as the girls.

Finally, the last person was a very familiar old man that Fuka instantly recognized. He was unconscious and was being supported by the other man.

"Professor Idabashi?" Fuka gasped in surprise.

"That's Satoru Idabashi? Not what I was expecting…" Ayeka mumbled under her breath.

Fuka paused in thought for a moment, before turning on the intercom and talking into it. "Hello, this is Fuka Tanaka, the Perfect Virologist. Please state your name and business here."

The blue-eyed girl on the other end jumped in surprise, before looking up at the camera warily. "Um, h-hello. I'm Tsubasa Kamii, a former member of the Hope's Peak student council. This man behind me is Tom Barloc, he's a good friend. We were told to come here by Mr. Isabashi."

"I can see that," the Virologist replied bluntly. "What happened to the Professor?"

Tsubasa shivered, clearly cold. "W-we were in Towa City. Nobody knows it yet, but things are going to get bad there soon, very quickly. Ultimate Despair has taken hostages!"

Before Fuka could reply, she heard the door behind her open, as one by one, the other Perfects began to gather around.

"What's going on?" Hermit asked curiously, looking over Fuuka's shoulder. "Who are they?"

"We heard the alarm go off, so we all rushed here." Emil explained calmly, pulling out a cloth and wiping a smudge off Fuka's glasses, despite the bluenette's growl of protest.

"We're not sure…" Ayeka frowned. "But… they have Professor Idabashi…"

"Satoru? They have him?" Cut in a familiar deep, commanding voice. Seriozha walked in, eyeing the monitor curiously. "Who did they say they are?"

After Fuka explained the situation, the green haired Director stroked his beard in deep thought.

"I say don't let them in. We don't need anymore trouble!" Ranze protested, waving his hands dramatically.

"Hehe, what a crossroads we are at. A fateful, fearful decision!" Kagemaru cackled, petting Corvo. "Our fearless leader will decide our fate!"

"Oi, will you two morons be quiet? The Director is thinking!" Iris snapped.

Seriozha sighed, turning the intercom back on. "You may come in. However, you will immediately hand Satoru Idabashi over to us, and will be detained for questioning until we decide if you are trustworthy or not. Are these terms acceptable to you?"

"Gladly." Tsubasa responded instantly with zero hesitation. "Trust me, I have information that you all will find interesting. Things out in the world are about to get even worse than they already are."

"Very well," Seriozha turned to Fuka. "Let them in."

The Virologist nodded numbly, forcing down the lump in her throat that was warning her that something was amiss. She hit the button.

And the massive door began to slowly open.

Fuka squinted her eyes at the sunlight that began to poke through, shielding her eyes. However, before she could recover, she felt her head begin to ache. Her vision blurred, and she felt herself gasping for air as she fell to her knees.

And then everything went black.


	4. Chapter 0: Garden of Eden Act 1

**AN: Sorry for the delay for a few days, but here it is! The last chapter before all the fun begins...**

**As usual, I wanna thank everyone who helped me RP their characters. You guys rock!**

**Also, starting next chapter I'll be answering reviews at the end of the chapters. I really would lve to hear your thoughts!**

**3/6/20 Rewrite:** **Changes have been made to fit the new canon, and some errors have been fixed.**

* * *

**?**

**Floor 1**

**Female Dormitory Common Area**

A muted murmur escaped the Geneticist as she slowly sat up with a puzzled expression. The world around her seemed to blur and it only seemed to exasperate the twinging sensation that pulsated in the back of her head.

The buxom blonde kept a composed demeanor as she extended a single hand before gently patting the couch she found herself seated upon. A look of relief filled her bright unfocused green eyes as she slowly lifted her black-framed glasses before pushing them up the bridge of her nose.

The result was instantaneous as the world came into focus. Miranda slowly allowed her head to pivot around what appeared to be a dormitory hall before she noticed a woman slumped on a couch adjacent from her. She bore a lab coat similar to her own.

Without a word, she bounded to her feet before pursing her lips. "...Could this be the Institute?... I think I arrived but it all feels so...fuzzy. Like I should remember something important, but I can't..." she murmured aloud.

She tapped her chin in concentration before relenting after a moment with a sigh. 'Ugh, this feeling reminds me of the last time I drank. Could I have fainted or was this all by design?' she pondered as she crossed over to the adjacent couch.

Wordlessly she leaned over, her massive cleavage inches from the other woman's face as she reached out before grinning mischievously as she took a pen from her coat pocket and tentatively poking the woman's cheek with it several times. "Oh dear, I've never seen a spider the size of a small cat before. How fascinating..."

"Ugh, what?" Fuka Tanaka mumbled as she steadily sat up, rubbing her eyes. Upon having her vision clear, the Virologist's eyes widened in surprise upon seeing an unfamiliar woman with ample cleavage, instinctively crying out and backing away.

Upon closer inspection, she noticed she was in the girl's common hall. She eyed the other unfamiliar girl suspiciously. Despite Fuka's unfamiliarity with the blonde woman, she wore an Institute lab coat. "I'm sorry, who are you?" The Perfect Virologist asked warily.

The blonde offered a sheepish smile in response, a twinge of guilt coloring her features as she returned her pen to her coat pocket. "Sorry for spooking ya luv. I just needed some answers and as cute as it was I couldn't let you slumber all day," she responded before extending her hand outward. "Miranda Bailey, former Ultimate Geneticist. I don't suppose you know what's going on? The last thing I recall was arriving at the institute...and everything is hazy after that."

The blue-haired Virologist warily accepted the handshake stiffly. "Fuka Tanaka, Perfect Virologist." She squinted her eyes in thought. "The last thing that happened..." She recalled opening the door for those strangers with Professor Idabashi. "I'm sorry, but did you come in with those people from Towa City? I don't remember seeing you..." Fuka mused.

The blonde shook her head in response. "No, as I recall Seriozha mentioned everyone else was already present. I was in the South Pacific when all that supposedly happened. I had a somewhat informal interview..." she trailed off as she reached up to rub at her forehead. "A short time later I arrived here. I-I can't help but feel like I'm forgetting something though."

Fuka raised an eyebrow at that. "So you came here alone later? But wait, that should not be possible... I mean, I know Seriozha talked about bringing another person here, but still..." The blue-haired woman gasped, pushing her glasses up on her face with a shaky hand. "Miranda, may I ask what the date is?"

The Geneticist continued to massage her temple a moment. "As memory serves it was the 18th or 19th of November. I was so jetlagged after the helicopter ride that I can't be entirely sure. My thoughts were distracted because I was also..." she trailed off once more as her eyes widened. "Bloody hell, I'll need to have some wellness tests. I know there was something else. Something very important," she mused as chewed on her bottom lip in irritation.

"19th of November? But it was the 14th of November when I blacked out. The hell?" Fuka mumbled, shaking her head. "Whatever the case, something is odd..."

"Obviously something bad has happened." Cut in a young yet commanding voice. The two women turned to see Song walk out of her room.

"Oh, Song. Hello." Fuka greeted in relief. "It is good to see a familiar face."

"Indeed." The Probabilist replied simply, nodding her head in agreement, and turning to size up the buxom blonde with intrigue. "Tell me, you say you have forgotten something important? Do try to remember. Every little bit in this odd situation may help."

Miranda nodded at the new arrival with a thoughtful expression. "Believe me when I say that I'm trying to. Considering the blackouts, it's possible whatever caused it might also be the reason for my gap in memory. I take it you awoke a moment ago too?" she questioned as she adjusted her glasses.

The Probabilist shook her head. "That is correct. And like Fuka, my last memory before passing out is the 14th of November, as we opened the vault door."

"Oh good, so it isn't just me..." Fuka sighed in relief.

"So it seems. If I had to make a wager, I would say the probability of the rest of our colleagues being in the same situation is very, very high." Song then turned back to eye Miranda, fiddling with her fingernail. "Which would mean that you, mysterious stranger, are the outlier in all this." The young girl raised a hand to Miranda. "I am Song Aisin Gioro, the Perfect Probabilist."

Before the Geneticist could open her mouth, Song gave her a small smile. "Ah, I already heard your name. Miranda Bailey. It is nice to meet you."

The blonde offered a slightly bemused chuckle in response. "Well, it seems we have introductions out of the way. Though we certainly have more questions than answers. Shall we look around? I'm getting a distinct feeling that this place is far less secure than Seriozha claimed."

"Seriozha being full of hot air? Tell me something I don't know..." Fuka mumbled under her breath.

"Miranda is right. Our best course of action would be to find everyone else. Let me see if I can contact them..." Song agreed, reaching into her lab coat.

Upon seeing Miranda's confused look, Fuka explained what she meant. "We all have these high tech portable laptop and tablet hybrids created by Professor Idabashi. One of its functions allows us all to send messages to one another."

"What?" The young probabilist muttered, searching through her lab coat more hastily. "My Genesis Pad is gone..."

Fuka's eyes widened, as she searched herself as well. "Mine is gone also... and my ID badge too... this is bad."

The Geneticist thumbed at her chin. "Seems we'll have to do this the old fashion way then. You both know this facility right? Any suggestions where we should start our search? I hope we won't need those badges to access everything, otherwise, this search may be a short one."

"Unfortunately, it seems that will be the case." Fuka sighed, running a hand through her hair. "We need our ID badges to access any floors higher than this one. The elevator won't work without them."

"Fuka is right. Though if there is a silver lining, it is that there are only 3 other main areas here. The female dormitories, where we are now. Then there's the cafeteria and kitchen area, the rec room, and of course, the central garden. Unless everyone else is on the higher floors, it will be easy to find everyone else." Song hummed in thought. "For now, I believe we should head towards the male dorms across the hall."

Miranda straightened her lab coat as she eyed the hallway for a moment. "Well, there's no time like the present right? Since you both are much better acquainted, I'll follow your lead. Hopefully one of the gentlemen here might have more answers then we do."

* * *

**?**

**Floor 1**

**Male Dormitory Common Room**

Kagemaru swatted at his face as he felt something pecking him, his eyes closed as drool rolled down his cheek. "Ugh, leave me aloneee..." He whined. Upon hearing a squawk, his eyes shot open. "What is it, Corvo?" He whispered, looking around and noticing they were in the male commons area. "Hmhm, how mysterious! To fall unconscious so suddenly... how exciting!"

Kline, meanwhile, also started stirring into conscious. His eyes blinked rapidly, and ever so slowly the programmer found himself getting up to his feet. "Good lord...what was that? What happened?"

"Heh, looks like we all got sucker-punched into sleep." Chuckled Leo, as he rubbed the back of his head. "What a bother."

"Now now, don't tell me you two aren't excited!" Kagemaru cackled with a wicked smile. "We're now dealing with the unknown, something humans always fear. This in and of itself is an experiment! Excellent!"

"I'm glad you're so happy over our current predicament," Kline snapped, rolling his eyes as he looked around. "Well. I suppose we may as well and try to find the others, yes? Perhaps someone else has a better idea of what happened."

"Yeah yeah, maybe we can stop by the rec room first for a drink? I could use a shot right about now." Leo looked up, his good-natured smile quickly slipping away as he noticed something on the wall. "Hey, you guys... has that monitor always been them?"

"Eh? You mean the TV?" The Phobologist asked in confusion.

"No, bird boy. I'm talking about that small monitor there, by the camera." He pointed, directing their attention to a small monitor hooked up next to the camera. "We've always had cameras, but that's new..."

Kline paused and tilted his head curiously as he stared at the monitor. "Yes...I do believe you're right. That wasn't there before. I'm getting a bad feeling about this..."

"Muahaha, and we seem to be missing our badges and Genesis Pads. And the plot thickens!" Kagemaru giggled. "We can't leave this floor now."

"Man, what a pain. And I left my favorite wine in my lab..." Upon seeing the looks the other two gave him, his eyes darted around with a nervous laugh. "Uh, I mean... not that I was drinking while on the clock or anything..."

"It is quite odd, isn't it?" The small boy mused, petting Corvo. "We blackout as soon as we open the door for those mysterious visitors. Is that a coincidence?"

"Likely not," Kline agreed as he shook his head. He scowled a little, before murmuring, "It must have been a trap. An obvious one too, in retrospect. I doubt that was even Doctor Idabashi they had with them."

"Eh, not much we can do about it now. The old fart Director made the call, and we need to roll with it." Leo shrugged. "Best thing we can do now is decide what to do from here, and regroup with everyone else."

"Heh, that's surprisingly good advice from someone like you!" Kagemaru snickered. "If worst comes to worst, I can use Corvo as a spy. It's really fun, trust me! I can use him to scope things out if you all wish?"

"It certainly couldn't hurt," Kline replied, giving a small shrug.

Kagemaru nodded, giving a quick whistle as Corvo flew off down the hall. The three waited in awkward silence before the bird returned. It squawked at the Phobologist for a few seconds, before Kagemaru turned back to face them. "Hehe, so it seems that we have all been divided into groups of three in different areas around the first floor. Some of the girls are heading this way, one of which is someone we don't know. How fun!" He cackled.

"Another new girl? What do you mean..." Leo started, before the door to the male commons area opened, revealing Song, Fuka, and an unfamiliar blonde girl.

Kline raised an eyebrow, glancing over the newcomers before focusing on the unknown girl. "I'm sorry, but who is this? And what in bloody blazes is going on here?!"

Fuka sighed in relief upon seeing the three boys, before shaking her head. "Well, there's a lot to cover but... this is-"

"Muhaha, you must be Miranda Bailey! The Perfect Geneticist." Kagemaru cackled, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"And just how do you know that?" Song inquired, looking at him suspiciously.

"I eavesdropped on the Director talking to her. I thought she wasn't coming for at least another week or so..." The phobologist mused.

"Yes well, apparently her last memory is later than ours, while we just remember November 14th. It raises some troubling questions." Fuka frowned.

"Wait, what? Have we really been unconscious for that long?!" Kline panicked, rearing back in shock. "But no, that...can't be the case. Unless...well, someone or something must have tampered with our memories. But...how? Why?"

He paused, bringing a hand to massage his temples. "Well, one thing at a time I suppose. Speaking of the Director… has anyone seen him? Where is he?"

"No. Not at all. And that is what is most concerning." Song sighed, shaking her head. "Even worse, without our Genesis Pads and badges, we can't contact anyone or go to the higher floors. This is clearly something that has been planned."

"Someone tampering with our memories... I don't like it." Leo then shrugged. "Oh well. I say we just go with the flow and see what happens. After all..." The suave man said, approaching Miranda and gently taking her hands in his. "it's not everyday you see such a lovely lady."

Miranda blushed, looking away. "O-oh, why thank you!" She giggled.

"Ignore him. He says that to every girl he sees." Fuka snapped, swatting Leo's hands away from Miranda. "Even now, he can't take anything seriously."

"Yes, I do believe we have more important things than fornication to be worrying about," Kline agreed as he shook his head. "Well then, what shall our next move be? Finding more of the others?"

"Yes. We all need to regroup as one. The central garden will be our best bet." Song agreed with a curt nod.

"Hehe, well then, shall we everyone? I have a feeling the real fun is about to begin!" Kagemaru said excitedly.

* * *

**?**

**Floor 1**

**Kitchen**

Tomoe groaned as she stirred awake, rubbing the back of her head as she sat up. The psychiatrist took a look around and noticed she was in the kitchen. She heard a loud moan, jumping slightly as she looked next to her and noticed Emil's head on her shoulder. She smiled slightly.

"Ohhh Emil wake up!" She teased, lightly pinching his cheek.

His eyes still closed shut, the young man settled a hand over the woman's before letting out a low yawn. The dark bags under his eyes seemed just a touch lighter than they had been. The Optometrist stayed right where he was beside Tomoe, clearly awake, though oddly silent.

"Oi, can you two lovebirds knock it off?" Iris moaned, rubbing her eyes as she guided her wheelchair over to them. "We have some serious shit to worry about."

"Right. Sorry." Tomoe blushed, slowly standing up and patting Emil on the head. "Why are we in the kitchen? Weren't we in the entrance hall, before passing out?"

"Aye." The mycologist replied glumly. "Even worse, our ID badges and Genesis Pads are gone. This ain't good."

Emil steadily rose to his feet, making sure to wipe his glasses clean first and foremost. "Apologies. It's been quite some time since I've slept so well. Thus, I was trying to enjoy the afterglow while I could. Was that an odorless sleeping gas, perhaps? Hmm, where pills fail, the toxicity of gas prevails? It would be worth replicating in the future," he mused before muttering to himself, "Alas, dreams still escape me..."

"I didn't catch a scent or a color of any gas..." Tomoe mused, raising a hand to her chin in thought. "As far as I remember, none of us were coughing, it was almost instantaneous as soon as the vault door was open."

"Aye, that's not suspicious at all!" Iris laughed somewhat bitterly. "Glasses boy, you're pretty smart, how did we get knocked out all at the same time like that?"

Glasses boy calmly adjusted his glasses, the white light glancing off their lens. "Nearly instantaneous... Even the direct application of chloroform would take minutes, and at a glance, it doesn't appear as though any of us are suffering from side effects... This is pure conjecture, but one possibility is that the metaphorical seeds for such had already been planted inside us long ago." He wriggled his fingers. "In other words, whoever is responsible may have control over the minutiae of our bodies. That would be disastrous, to say the least."

"That is worrying..." The psychiatrist shuddered, hugging herself. "I feel so... violated."

"Let's just stay calm, and figure out what to do next," Iris said, attempting to keep the peace. "Obviously, without our badges, we ain't goin' nowhere beyond this floor. It's safe to assume the others are in the same situation, so we should probably find them."

Emil raised a finger in quiet protest. "That's as reasonable a course of action as any, but first I'd like to perform a quick health inspection on the two of you to ensure that all is well. And since this is an opportunity like no other, I also have the perfect pair of glasses I've been meaning for you to try on, Iris." As usual, he began to unbutton his raincoat.

"What the bloody hell? My glasses are perfectly fine, thank you very much you pervert," the wheelchair-bound mycologist replied with disgust.

"Um, I wouldn't mind some new glasses..." Tomoe said with a small smile, earning an incredulous look from Iris. "I think my prescription has changed anyhow?"

"Oi, we're seriously doin' this right now? Alright then." Iris sighed, throwing her hands up in surrender.

The Optometrist's shoulders sagged just an inch as he buttoned back up. "I'm used to being called perverse, though I thought you of all people would understand, Iris... There is nothing wrong with change every once in a while... Seeing the world from a new perspective, behind a new pair of lenses... I've incurred a temporary deficit to my enthusiasm. Let us be on our way now." He spared a dispassionate glance at Tomoe. "Your prescription is fine as it is, Mrs. Kagami."

The two girls watched Emil slowly walk off.

"Pervert," Iris growled.

"I just think he has a crush on you." Tomoe chuckled. "He clearly doesn't like me. I wonder why?"

* * *

**?**

**Floor 1**

**Dining Hall**

Ayeka felt herself stir awake, her hands gripped firmly on the handles of her wheelchair. Rubbing her eyes as she began to focus, she took note of the fact that she was in the Dining Hall. Many questions began to come up, especially since she had just been in the entrance hall with Fuka. Where was everyone else?

"Uggh, my head feels like it's spinning," Ranze moaned as he lifted himself off the floor next to a turned over chair. He looked around slowly before fully standing up. "Did I fall? No, wait why am I here?"

"Hehe, are we playing hide and seek now?" Ysandro giggled, rushing over to join them. "Wait, weren't we in the entrance hall?"

"Yeah, we were..." Ayeka paused, raising a hand to her chin in thought. "Why and how did we all blackout at the same time?"

The redhead crossed his arms with a sigh. "It looks like it. I told the director that letting in those people was a bad idea. I don't know why we ended up here, but it's obvious who's responsible."

"Eh? So this isn't a game?" Ysandro asked, confused. "Those people seemed nice!"

"Appearances can be deceiving, Ysandro," Ayeka responded patiently, doing her best to overlook his stupidity. "Ah, it looks like we don't have our badges and Pads. Whoever thought this up was well prepared."

"Damn, this is really getting annoying. They could have been spies who have had their eyes on this place and our research," Ranze explained looking between the others. "Hmm, we need to be careful moving forward, are either of you two feeling any different than usual? Besides any grogginess from just waking up?"

"Hm, no. I feel just fine." The epidemiologist mused. "And my wheelchair seems to have not been tampered with either, thankfully."

Ysandro bent down to pet Minino, who was yawning. "Nah, I'm good too, and so is Mini-pup! So everything is fine, right? None of us are hurt!"

"So, we should decide our next course of action," Ayeka told Ranze, ignoring Ysandro. "Perhaps there are other around here?"

"I wouldn't call us waking up with no memories fine," the Prostheticist muttered. "But I would imagine the others still here too. Though if they're on different floors we're going to have some trouble getting to them without our badges."

"Indeed. We should be careful-" Ayeka started, before her eyes widened. "Is that...?"

Sure enough, the door to the kitchen swung open as Emil, Iris, and Tomoe came out.

"Oh! Hello. Seems we're not alone after all. What a relief!" The perfect psychiatrist smiled, giving the trio a small wave.

"Aye, it is a relief to see a few more of us. Easy to assume that the rest of us are on this floor too." Iris added, her wheelchair making squeaking noises.

"If anything, this should be more worrying," Emil said calmly. "This is too organized."

"I have to agree, I'm willing to bet all our memories stop at the door opening. This isn't something someone does without a good bit of preparation," Ranze added straightening up his jacket.

"Right. We need to stick together, we have the numbers to overpower our captors if need be. We just have to-" Ayeka started.

"Hey, wanna hear a story?" The Animal Behavioralist cut in with a bright smile. "One time, my brother..."

"No," Iris said simply.

"But..."

"No."

The group of six stood silently for a moment before Tomoe sighed. "Well, we might as well head for the central garden. No point in hanging around here."

Ranze nodded towards the Psychiatrist. "Yes, I think we best move along. We aren't likely to get any answers. Plus if we may find out some useful information by seeing who all we even can find, and who we cannot."

"Alright. To the garden we go then!" Tomoe smiled, holding the cafeteria door open for everyone. "After you all."

As everyone began to file out, a dejected Ysandro was last. Tomoe patted him on the back comfortingly. "I would love to hear your story later Ysandro. And I'm sure Akuji will too."

The Animal Behaviorist gave her a bright, grateful smile.

* * *

**?**

**Floor 1**

**Rec Room**

Ikouze licked his lips, sighing as he shrugged himself awake. He slowly stood up and rubbed his eyes, noticing he had been slumped against an arcade game cabinet.

"What the heck?" He frowned, noticing two familiar faces sitting on one of the couches together, one of the girl's heads leaning on the other. He sighed.

"Hey Azra, Shadya... wake up!" He shook Azra first, growling. "This isn't the time to take a nap!"

"Mm, no this is too comfy to get up from," Azra mused quietly. She nuzzled against the still sleeping Pathologist and tried her best to drift off to sleep again.

"No, no! Wake up!" Ikouze cried, shaking her violently until she rolled off the couch and fell on the floor. "You too Shadya! Wake up!"

Shadya opened one of her eyes, blinking as she looked at the AI specialist with a frown. "Nope." She said, closing her eyes again.

The Entomologist groaned softly as she slowly sat up from the ground. She rubbed her shoulder as her millipede seemed to also be woken up by Azra's fall. She stifled a giggle from the bug tickling across her shoulders as she finally started looking around her surroundings.

"Heh, I'm not saying I'm mad about waking up snuggled against a cutie like Shay, but why are we here? Weren't we all at the entrance just a moment ago?"

"That's why I'm panicking!" Ikouze stressed, shaking his head. "For us all to blackout like that, what happened?"

"Mm, maybe those visitors weren't so friendly after all..." Shadya spoke up with a yawn, rubbing her eyes. "Where is everyone else?"

"Would the visitors have even been able to do that though? We hadn't even fully let them in yet. Something is fishy about all this," Azra explained as tapped her chin in thought. This didn't last long as Arcelio continued moving around, also attempting to get his bearings, causing the Entomologist to crack a smile.

"I agree with that. We can't just assume the worst..." Ikouze started, noticing Azra's giggling. "Hey, Azra, can you please save... whatever that is, for later?"

"Eh, let her. We could stand to stay calm in this situation." The pathologist yawned, searching her lab coat before her eyes widened. "Hey, are you guys missing your ID badges and Genesis Pads?"

"Huh? Oh, you're right, Shay, I don't have any of my stuff on me," Azra muttered as she finished looking through her lab coat. She looked concerned again as she lightly started stroking the giant bug who finally seemed to calm down. "All right, so we woke up in a different room, we were scattered, and our important tech seems to have been taken from us... I'm really not liking the looks of all this."

"Do not worry! I'm sure the Director has a perfectly good explanation for this!" Ikouze replied confidently, slamming a fist against his chest with a smile. "Perhaps this is simply a test, or a team building exercise! Let's make sure we make the most of this!"

Shadya lazily stood up, stretching as she peered around. "It's quiet. I don't like that. Where is everybody else?"

"I'm sure they're elsewhere. Come on, let's all be positive about this!" The AI specialist urged.

"Being worry warts doesn't really solve anything, so I'm with Ikou, we shouldn't get caught up with the negatives!" Azra agreed with a nod. She looked over the other two as she crossed her arms. "Let's get off our asses and start finding everyone."

"Agreed. The closest area is the garden right outside, surely some of the others have gathered there?" Ikouze suggested.

"Mm, sounds good to me. Hey Azra, I don't have my pillow, can I use your shoulder again when we get outside?" Shadya mumbled.

The green-haired woman grinned as she walked up and reached for the other's hand, holding it gently. "Of course you can! Though I should probably warn you that Arc here will probably want to crawl and snuggle with you too."

Ikouze looked between the two with a faint smile, before turning to look at the door. "Well, shall we ladies?" He asked, opening the door.

* * *

**?**

**Floor 1**

**Central Garden**

As Hermit struggled to wake up, the serene sound of water flowing slowly became more and more clear. Squinting her eyes, the physicist was able to make out that she was indeed in the central garden. It truly was beautiful, with an expansive field of flowers, trees, and an artificial river. In the middle of the large garden, was the massive elevator that seemed to never end, and led up to the control room of the 4th tower of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, where they often ran experiments involving radiation.

However, two things caught Hermit's eyes: a massive tree that towered above all the others, that seemed to shine with an ethereal glow. The second was a large stage that had been set up next to the strange new tree.

"Well, those certainly are new," spoke up a rough male voice behind Hermit. She jumped, spinning around to see Kazu walk up next to her.

"Oh, Kazu!" The Perfect Physicist gasped, shaking her head. "Don't sneak up on me like that, I got scared!" She pouted, turning away. "I'm on edge enough as it is."

The Theorist bowed his head in apology as he stopped close in front of Hermit. "Forgive me, I certainly didn't expect someone as large as would be sneaking up on anyone. It was quite shocking to suddenly wake up here of all places. Anyway, are you feeling all right?"

Hermit hummed, leaning her head to the side in thought. "Um, I think so. Everything seems to be running just fine!" She turned back to regard the strange tree with intrigue. "Well, if you're feeling a bit adventurous, think we should go check that out?"

"Yes that sounds fine, but can I ask that you stay behind me? This whole thing is feeling a bit ominous," Kazu explained as he stepped towards the tree, before stopping to regard the physicist.

"What? You think I need a big, strong man to protect me because I'm scared?" The android pouted, playing with her hair before giving Kazu a sheepish smile. "Actually, I wouldn't mind. Thanks!"

"You're welcome, and I didn't mean to imply anything, I suppose it's just a matter of instincts," the giant man mused. His own smile disappeared as he turned back to face the strange tree and began walking toward it with Hermit in tow.

As the two approached the massive tree, the first thing that caught their eyes was what was causing the trees strange glow: countless golden apples decorated the tree, glowing as if beckoning them forward.

The second thing was the small, white-haired boy sleeping under the tree, his head drooped forward as he snored lightly.

"Akuji is still sleeping..." Hermit deadpanned with a sigh. "Leave it to him to sleep through all this."

Kazu nodded as he wearily stepped forward towards the sleeping man. He spared a glance at the tree before turning down to the geodesist and gently shook him awake. "C'mon, rise and shine sleeping beauty."

"Ngh, 5 more minutes... actually how about another hour?" Akuji yawned, as he shakily stood to his feet and rubbed his eyes. "What do you want? Wait, are we outside?"

Hermit simply nodded, pointing to the tree behind him. The geodesist's eyes widened. "Whoa, when did that get there?"

"Don't know. It happened sometime between when we all passed out, and now." The physicist shrugged. "And that weird stage too..."

Hermit, Akuji, and Kazu all looked at the stage, that also had a podium on it embedded with the Chernobyl Institute's logo.

"It certainly seems like we missed quite a lot. I suppose we may as well check it out now before going to find the others," the Theorist muttered running a hand through his beard.

"Don't think that's needed." Akuji replied, gesturing around the garden to the various doors, as the other Perfects began assembling in the garden.

"Well, I suppose this makes things easier!" Ikouze chirped, smiling as he looked around at his colleagues. "We're all here together again!"

Kline hummed, raising a finger to his chin in thought. "Yes, but now that means that we're all trapped on the first floor together. And if this is all of us..."

"...then that means that the Director is indeed missing." Song finished, furrowing her brows in thought. "That's not good."

"Aye, ain't that a kick in the teeth. Knew we shouldn't have opened those vault doors." Iris grumbled.

Azra shrugged with one arm as she carefully wrapped the other around the pathologist resting against her shoulder. "I mean, it's not like we really could have known anything like this would happen. Plus once the Director decided on it it's not like we had a ton of choice."

"Right. I'm sure Seriozha would want us to remain calm." Miranda spoke up, giving everyone a smile.

"Uh, wait. Hold the phone. Who the hell are you?" Ranze growled, looking at the Geneticist. "Is everyone just gonna ignore this?"

Miranda visibly flinched, with Fuka stepping in front of her. "Everyone, this is Miranda Bailey, the Perfect Geneticist. And believe it or not, her appearance actually has given us a helpful hint. It seems its at least been a few weeks since the incident with the mysterious people. Miranda says she arrived on the 18th."

"Later in the month? What?" Tomoe frowned, straightening up her glasses. "Do not take this the wrong way, but does she have any evidence to back up this claim?"

"Jeez, why do you guys have to freak out so much? Can't we talk about this someplace where we can sit down at least?" Shadya muttered. She let go of the entomologist and without another word laid down in the grass to go back to sleep.

Azra sighed for a moment as she patted the girl on the head. However once she stood back up the green-haired woman began to let out a small stream of giggles as she turned back to the center of the group. "You guys don't have anything to worry about. You have my word that we can trust Miri and her big wonderful boobies!" Azra cheered as she practically tackled the Geneticist, burying her face against the taller woman's chest.

Everyone remained silent for a moment, before Emil straightened his glasses. "Ah, you two know each other? What a coincidence..." He mused.

"Yes, we do!" Miranda gushed, embracing the entomologist tightly. "It's been quite awhile, and it seems Azra's enthusiasm has not changed a bit!"

Ysandro giggled, holding a hand to his mouth in an attempt to suppress them. "Well, there we go! If Azra says we can trust her, then we're good!"

"Hehe, well can we really?" Kagemaru smirked, petting Corvo on his shoulder. "Who's to say that this isn't some sort of long haul plot, and they're in on it together?"

Leo blinked, shaking his head. "Dude, seriously?"

"Whether we can trust her or not is a topic for another time," Fuka sighed, rubbing her temples. "We first need to figure out what's going on."

"I agree!" Ayeka spoke up, giving Fuka a smile. "Like, what's up with that stage and massive, glowing tree?"

"We were just talking about that before you guys showed up," Hermit replied. "We have no idea."

Kazu nodded along with the physicist before adding, "I must say though, having this stuff just appear does add some credibility to Miranda's claim that a few weeks have passed."

"And those golden apples are quite strange. Are they really just for show?" Kline asked curiously.

"Hmmm." Song mused thoughtfully. "The tree itself is clearly real, so therefore we can conclude that the apples most likely are too. How fascinating. I have never seen anything like this."

"I wonder if they taste good?" Akuji spoke up, breaking his silence.

"Well, only one way to find out!" Ysandro cheered, as he reached up to the tree to grab one...

**"No, don't grab that, you goddamn idiot!"** Screeched out a loud, booming voice.

"Whoa, what the hell?" Leo's eyes widened as everyone began looking around. "Who said that?"

"It sounds like it came from over the loudspeakers, those can only be accessed in the fourth-floor control room…" Ikouze trailed off, biting a fingernail nervously. "It also sounds like they're using a voice changer."

**"Well, aren't you all a smart bunch. Oh yes, this is going to be fun…"** The voice snickered.

"Who are you? Show yourself, coward!" Ranze barked, sweat visibly dripping down his face.

**"Coward? I've been called many things in my life, but coward is certainly a first. Also that's real rich coming from you, pal."** The voice taunted. **"But, I digress. Since all of you are here, I think it's finally time to get this little experiment started! If you all will please direct your attention to the stage…"**

As everyone turned around, Fuka felt her heart hammering in her chest. All of this felt so surreal, like a dream. She knew that deep down, something bad was about to happen. That much was clear from them blacking out.

Suddenly, a large whirring sound, as if from a giant motor, caused all of the Perfects the recoil in surprise. After a moment, the sound stopped.

**"Eh, sorry about that. Trying to keep this big fancy place running can be a bit strenuous sometimes…"** The voice chuckled, though this time it wasn't over the loudspeaker, **"Oh, you folks can't see me. Oopsies!"**

A clawed hand scraped against the top of the podium, as slowly but surely a small bear like figure made its way up. As it came into view, the Perfects felt their blood run cold.

"Is that… a stuffed bear?" Ayeka trembled, squeezing her eyes shut. "This isn't happening."

"This looks awfully strange…" Kline observed.

**"Gee, good job. Figure that out by yourself?"** The automaton teased, pointing a gloved finger at them. This Monokuma wore a yellow and black hazmat suit, and instead of the standard red eye, it glowed a brilliant yellow-green. **"My name is Hoshasenkuma! And don't compare me to my cousin, ya hear? Unlike him, I'm an intellectual!"** Hoshasenkuma boasted proudly.

"Oi, that means 'radiation bear' in Japanese. How fitting. Ya certainly look the part." Iris observed. "Whaddaya want with us?"

**"What do I want? Well, that's simple!"** The green eyed bear leaned forward, peering at them one by one. **"Naturally, I'm here to make you all kill each other! It's time to get the world's second annual killing game started!"**


	5. Chapter 0: Garden of Eden Act 2

**AN: Welp, it has been far too long, but here it is, time to finally continue!**

**I've been holding onto this chapter for awhile now, and have waited for A New Luck to get going before I really start to ramp this story back up, which I'm happy to report is now, even if this chapter is on the shorter end! Enjoy, and thank you for your patience, I'm really excited about the new AU and what it will bring!**

* * *

**5:36 PM**

**Floor 1 **

**Central Garden**

A long, dread filled silence passed over the Perfects as Hoshasenkuma's declaration seeped in. One by one the gravity of their situation took hold of them, looks of horror and dismay appearing on their faces.

"W-Wait, what do you mean a killing game? I don't think I understand!" Hermit cried out, her eyes wide.

Leo chuckled, running a hand through his hair. "Well, I suppose things are getting interesting now." He smirked, earning him incredulous looks from almost everyone else.

"This isn't funny…" Miranda responded, shooting Leo an exasperated look. The Geneticist turned to look back at Hoshasenkuma, a pleading look in her eyes. "Mr. Seriozha, if this is a joke I ask that you please cease this at once!"

The green eyed bear tilted his head at her quizzically, raising a paw to his mouth as if confused. "**I'm afraid you're barking up the wrong tree, missy. There's been an… **_**unfortunate **_**change in command here. But that doesn't really matter… after all, this isn't about me, but all of you. And unfortunately…" **Hoshasenkuma waddled to the edge of the stage, peering down at the Perfects with a large grin. "**I'm certainly not joking. You all thought these walls were safe from the outside world that was suffering, and now you all are paying the price for such arrogance. You all hold the title of 'Perfects', and I wish to see just how true such a lofty title holds up."**

"So, despair has wormed its way even into these walls. Hate to break it to ya pal, we ain't gonna kill each other so easily!" Iris snapped, glaring at the bear with an intense hatred. "This isn't gonna go the way ya think it is, ya hear?"

"That's exactly right." Kazu agreed. "I'm not sure what your goal is but-"

"**But nothing!" **The kuma barked with fury, slamming a pawed hand down on the podium. "**Humans are all the same, no matter their age, gender, religion, social status… It makes no difference. So don't go thinking that just because some old fart from Russia thought you were special, that you actually are."**

Tomoe frowned, her eyebrows scrunching up as she continued to observe their captor. "By that statement, I can deduce that you are a person who does not have a very lofty view of humanity. Even more so us. Are we being punished for something?"

"**Not too shabby an assessment, sweetheart." **Hoshasenkuma praised, clapping his paws in mock praise. "**Listen to me, and listen well. I am indeed here to pass judgement, and I am here to cleanse this place of the unworthy, however… I am only here for one of you specifically. I don't really give a damn about the rest of you."**

"Only… one of us? So you're saying that someone here specifically has earned your wrath?" Kline inquired curiously, his hand tapping on his chin in thought. "What could this one person have possibly done to warrant you dragging everyone here into this situation?"

Fuka gritted her teeth in silent fury, glaring at the bear. "So, what this asshole is saying is this so called killing game is his way of snuffing out this person. We're just collateral damage."

Everyone looked at the Virologist in confusion, before Kazu's eyes widened with realization and horror. "Fuka, are you saying even the bear here is unaware of who he's after?"

Fuka's gaze was unwavering. "Am I correct or not?"

The yellow bear stared blankly at the blue haired woman, before suddenly throwing back his head and bursting out into a fit of laughter. "**Well done, truly! Nothing gets past you lot, now does it? That's correct, I don't yet know the identity of this despicable individual. Which is why I'm here."**

"So we're all being punished as a result of one individual among us because they did something horrible?" Ikouze summed up, looking between his colleagues with visible worry. "Did I get that right?"

"Collective punishment." Song mused quietly. "The selfish acts of one causes the misery of many."

"**Hm, almost." **Hoshasenkuma mused. "**This person… is not being seeked out by me because of what they did do, but because of what they PLAN to do in the future. If you think I'm the bad guy here, you lot are sorely mistaken. I want to save the human race, and I'll do anything to make that happen. Even if that means having to pile up the bodies of innocents to do so. Is that clear enough?"**

"Sure is! Thank you!" Ysandro replied cheerfully, good naturedly rubbing the back of his head.

"Fucking idiot." Ranze muttered, shaking his head.

"And I'm guessing this person among us won't be willing to give themselves up for our sakes?" Leo asked hopefully, a small smile on his face. Upon being met with silence, he shrugged. "Well, it was worth a shot."

"Hehe, so someone among us was, or still is, concocting something that would threaten humanity, and was planning on using the Institute to carry it out?" Kagemaru giggled, a wide smirk on his face. "Things just keep getting more interesting by the minute! Though this whole ordeal is quite mundane and tedious. Tell me bear, will you end the game once you catch the person you seek? And why go through all this trouble, surely there must be an easier way? Or maybe-"

"**Jesus Christ, will you shut the hell up? You're making my ears bleed!" **The automaton complained, its left eye seeming to glow a furious yellow. "**If you all will please pipe down for a minute, I'll explain how this little show of ours will run. But first, I have a gift for you fine folks, so be grateful!"**

Hoshasenkuma grunted, waddling as he reached under his podium and pulling out a large box. "**I believe you all have been looking for these?" **He chuckled, plopping the box down on the edge of the stage.

Everyone hesitated, before Emil took the initiative, reaching into the box, his eyes widening as he pulled out his ID badge and his Genesis Pad. "Hm, why do I have a feeling that these are not the same as when you took them from us?"

Everyone began pulling out their missing possessions, Hermit gulping as she warily inspected her tablet. "I don't like where this is going…"

Kline scowled, his hands typing quickly as he began shifting through his device. "Your guess is correct Emil, this horrid bear purged and encrypted many of the files and applications on these things. Whoever they are, they knew what they were doing."

"Mmm, well at least we have the ID badges back?" Shadya offered optimistically, Azra nodding in agreement. "We can unlock the locked doors-"

"Not gonna happen." Ikouze interjected, having hooked up his badge to his tablet. "Our captor also took away our administration privileges we get from the badges, so they can't open all the doors within this place anymore. Hell, we can't even access the elevator!"

"Hm, maybe you can hack it?" Akuji yawned, rubbing his eyes. "Isn't that, like, your job?"

Before Kline and Ikouze could reply, Hoshasenkuma burst out into laughter, the bear clutching its sides. "**Yeah, that ain't gonna happen. Tampering with electronics and doors is strictly against the rules, after all!"**

"So we do have some sort of rules? I assume it has to do with this new application on our tablets?" Song inquired, eyeing the black and red icon on her screen.

"**Ding ding ding! Got it in one!" **The kuma confirmed, giving them a thumbs up. "**If you all will be so kind as to open said app, I'll go over just how fun this little game of ours is gonna be!"**

One by one, the Perfects began to read the rules with disdain.

**The Codex**

**1\. Attacking the Director in any way will result in immediate termination of the Perfects life.**

**2\. Breaking down locked doors, messing with any equipment or electronics, and accessing restricted areas without the Director's approval will result in immediate termination of the Perfects life.**

**3\. "Nighttime" is from 10:00 PM to 7:00 AM. During this time, Perfects are allowed to roam the Institute as they please, however all dormitory water services will be shut off, and the dining hall will be locked. The kitchen, however, may still be accessed.**

**4\. Murder of a fellow Perfect is not only allowed, but encouraged. Perfects are allowed to kill a maximum of 2 people per motive.**

**5\. When a Perfect kills another Perfect, the killer will then become an "Imperfect", and the victim a "Fallen".**

**6\. Once 2 other Perfects discover a Fallen, an investigation period of 1 hour will be triggered. An autopsy report will then be distributed via the Genesis Pads.**

**7\. After the investigation, a Crucible will then take place, where Perfects will have to discover the Imperfect among them.**

**8\. If the Perfects successfully identify the Imperfect, the Imperfect shall be executed and the game shall continue.**

**9\. However, if an Imperfect is successfully able to deceive their fellow Perfects, they shall be given a choice between two rewards:**

**9A. The first option is the Imperfect may choose to leave the Institute immediately. However, in exchange, the Imperfect must choose another Perfect to die in their place.**

**9B. The second option is the granting of the Imperfects greatest desire. However, in exchange, they must stay within the Institute and continue the game, and must kill again to escape. However, they may remain anonymous of their crime.**

**10\. After every Crucible, a new floor within the Institute will become available.**

**11\. Perfects are also encouraged to seek out the one amongst them who threatens humanity. If over half of the remaining Perfects are in agreement about who the individual is and possess sufficient evidence, they may call for a final Crucible and bring them to justice. If the Director agrees with the general consensus, the threat against humanity will be executed, and the killing game will cease immediately.**

**12\. Additional rules may be added at the Director's discretion.**

"What the actual hell? Imperfects? Crucibles? Is this supposed to be some kind of joke?" Ranze growled, his hands clutching his tablet tightly.

"Hmm, Mr. Bear, I have a question!" Azra piped up, raising her hand enthusiastically. "What do you mean by our greatest desires?"

"**An excellent question, sweetheart!" **Hoshasenkuma replied a smirk, readjusting his gas mask. "**So… how do I put this into words… to make things more interesting, I plan on manipulating your greatest desires! I happen to be able to make anything you could possibly want, happen. You want revenge on someone who wronged you? Done. You want power, wealth, women, or maybe all of those above? Done! Or maybe..." **The kuma smiled deviously, glancing down at the dead silent group below him. "**...maybe you want something that transcends the imagination, like immortality, or reviving a dead loved one."**

The Perfects remained dead silent, and the kuma began to giggle as he eyed them and the gears that were turning in their brains. "**I see that's getting your creative juices flowing! Like I said, humans are all the same."**

"Oi, hold on just a second!" Iris replied, the girl's hands gripped to the side of her wheelchair tightly. "You trying to me that you can bring back the dead? That's literally impossible!"

"Can… can you really do all that?" A shaking Ranze added.

"**Well, duh. I'm not someone who is full of hot air. I happen to be in possession of a certain something that can make the impossible, possible. I am, after all, the God here that resides in Eden**. **I'd also take a gander that some of you don't even know what you might want. Don't worry about that, we'll figure it out soon enough." **Hoshasenkuma added, glancing at the tree with golden apples. "**And oh yeah, don't eat these. Not yet anyways, they're for future use. Failure to comply will be considered breaking the rules. Are there any other questions?"**

Upon his question being met with silence, the kuma clapped his paws together with a giggle. "**Ahaha! Excellent! I'll leave you fine folks be to get acclimated to your new situation. Do note that sometime tomorrow I'll be kickstarting the first motive! See ya later!"**

The bear climbed off his podium, waddling to the elevator in the center of the garden and disappearing inside.

After a few moments of silence, Miranda took a deep breath. "Well, this is bad."

"No shit sherlock. We're balls deep in the belly of the beast." Iris snorted, running a hand through her hair. "So, any bright ideas on what we should do first?"

"Well, we need to remain calm first off. Then assess our situation. Unneeded panic and worry will only exacerbate our situation." Tomoe added, attempting to keep the peace. "Our captor said that they were only after someone specific."

Emil took off his glasses, cleaning them as he let out a loud sigh. "Yes, well, the mastermind is willing to walk over all of our corpses if it means they can eliminate this person they see as a threat."

"And supposedly this dangerous person is one of us…" Ayeka squeaked out, glancing around at her colleagues with wariness in her eyes. "I don't want to suspect any of you, but…"

"Hmph, well it can really be any of us. I don't trust any of you. And don't think that because you have a wheelchair that I'll let my guard down around you." Ranze growled, straightening his suit.

Ayeka recoiled, and Iris growled, shaking a fist at the prosthetist. "Oi, you little shit!"

"C'mon, don't be like that," Kazu replied, stepping in front of Ranze in an attempt to be diplomatic. "Besides, remember only one of us is this massive threat. And who knows, the bear may be lying just to rile us up against one another."

"Doesn't matter. We all saw how the Hope's Peak game went! All the good intentions in the world won't be able to stop the bodies from dropping when the motives come into play. I'm just being a realist," Ranze looked around Kazu at Ayeka. "And the Steven Hawking wannabe certainly doesn't get a pass."

The wheelchair bound Epidemiologist trembled, turning her face away to shield the small tears that began forming in her eyes.

Kazu's brows furrowed, the taller man clearly losing patience as he towered over the shorter man. "Ranze, there's no need to make her cry like that. It's completely uncalled for." He warned calmly.

"If that's supposed to be a threat, it's not working." Ranze's body, however, shook as he glared back up at the much taller Number Theorist. "Don't think you can use your thug like looks to scare me."

"I'm not trying to scare anyone. I'm simply saying that I won't tolerate you scaring the little lady here based on her disabilities," Kazu countered lowly, squinting his eyes in warning. "So, I suggest you calm down and stop throwing out baseless accusations and insults."

Everyone held their breath as the two continued their standoff, before Ranze relented with a growl. "This is ridiculous. Just don't come crying to me when things go south."

The Perfect Prosthetist marched away to the dormitories, muttering under his breath.

"Jesus Christ, we're screwed." Fuka sighed, rubbing her temples in frustration.

Miranda gave the blue haired woman a small, sympathetic smile, resting a soft hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry luv, we just need to give time for everyone to gather their bearings." The Geneticist turned back to Kazu, giving him a grateful look. "Thank you for that. I'm not one to condone threats, but the peace needed to be kept."

The larger man nodded simply in response, turning to regard the shaking Epidemiologist. "Are you ok, Ayeka?"

The frail girl nodded, wiping the spare tears from her face. "Yes, thank you. I've heard worse catcalls in my lifetime, it is nothing I'm not already used to."

Iris gave her friend a small pat on the head. "Hey, why don't we go back to your room and freshen up? Your eyes are red and puffy."

Ayeka nodded, and the Mycologist gave the rest of the group a strained smile. "Don't worry about us, we'll catch up with you all later."

As the two strolled away, Shadya yawned. "Can we take a nap break please?"

"I second that." Akuji piped up, rubbing his eyes.

Ikouze gave the two an incredulous look. "You cannot be serious. Sleeping is the last thing any of us should be doing right now!"

"Hm, actually, I think it's a great idea!" Azra offered. "A little nap never hurt anyone!"

"As do I." Song agreed, resting a hand on her chin. "Ikouze, I know you want to get down to business and help set up some working rules, but several others here have already been mentally strained, and it's getting quite late. Those of us who want to take a break can, and the rest of us can meet in the dining hall. Does that sound agreeable to everyone?"

As everyone nodded in agreement, Song clapped her hands. "Very well, then those who want to discuss our predicament can meet in the dining hall. The rest of you may take a break and gather your bearings, but please be sure to catch up with one of us who is going to the dining hall later."

* * *

**6:14 PM**

**Floor 1**

**Dining Hall **

"So, this seems to be everyone who's coming. I like this group that we have assembled!" Ikouze started optimistically.

"In other words, we have the most responsible of us here. No need to mince words," Kazu replied, resting his head on his shoulder. "We can use this chance to calm down and rationally think through our situation."

Song hummed in thought. "So, let's start with our options. We're stuck on the first floor with no means of getting to the exit, and we cannot contact the outside world. Unfortunately, we have no choice but to play along. We've been outmatched, clearly. Anyone have any idea who's behind this? Perhaps Ultimate Despair, or an enemy of the Director? Or maybe… well, I hate to suggest it, but maybe it is Director Seriozha himself?"

"No! That can't be possible!" Miranda piped up adamantly, shaking her head. "Mr. Seriozha is a kind man, he'd never do something like this! He must have been kidnapped, or as much as I hate the thought, killed."

"I agree with Miranda, but not for the ridiculous reason she gave," Fuka countered, folding her arms. "No offense, Doctor Bailey, but you don't know Seriozha like I do. You only know the side of him he presented to you over video chats, it's almost all a facade. In reality, he is an ambitious, manipulative, and borderline obsessive man. I have no doubt that he'd not hesitate to do something like this, however…" The Virologist paused, glancing at her colleagues seriously. "The Chernobyl Institute is his pride and joy. He's invested billions of American dollars and over half a decade of work into this, so he'd never bring it all crashing down just for his own amusement. If anything, this is most likely just a terrorist attack by Ultimate Despair."

"And the last memory all of us have, besides Miranda, is those strange people begging to be let in with Professor Idabashi. I believe one of them said she was a former Hope's Peak student. She said she had important information on stuff that was going to happen outside. And from what I could tell, she was serious," Tomoe added confidently, furrowing her brows in thought. "Besides, them coming in would not account for us instantly being knocked out. Thus, Miranda's claim is true and our memories have been altered."

"That is even more troubling. Assuming the group or individuals responsible have the ability to mess with our memories, there's no telling how much time has passed, and what things we've forgotten," Kline pointed out. "And of course, there's the fact that supposedly one of us is not who they say they are."

"But we can't think about that!" Hermit argued. "It'll just make things worse if we keep suspecting each other."

"Right, indeed. I'd suggest we start establishing some sort of rules, and maybe even elect a person or two we can all get behind to lead us, but… well, we should probably save that until the morning when everyone has calmed down and we're all here." Song suggested.

"Well, it looks like we should convene here for the evening," Emil interejected, speaking up for the first time. "By the way, can any of us really cook? We had Curie cook all our food for us, but now that she's offline, we're on our own."

"I would not mind," Miranda offered with a bright smile. "I used to cook all the time for my children, and I'm not too bad if I say so myself!"

"Ah, and I'll help out, why not? I usually wake up early anyways. I'll do my best to assist you Ms. Bailey." Kline added, much to the shock of everyone else.

Hermit looked at Kline with newfound respect. "Wow, I have to say, I didn't expect you to be one to cook!"

Kline gave her a slight smile in response. "You'd be surprised. While I can't promise to be as skilled as Miranda is, I do believe I can suffice in whipping up a decent breakfast."

"Then it's settled. We'll all meet here for breakfast tomorrow after the Dining Hall opens." Kazu concluded, slowly rising from his chair. "Let's take tonight to get some rest and gather our bearings."

* * *

**6:23 PM**

**Floor 1**

**Female Dormitories (Ayeka's Room)**

"Aye, here ya go sweetheart." Iris sighed, handing a sniffling Ayeka a few tissues. "Don't let that asshole get to you, ya hear?"

The black haired girl sniffed, adjusting her scarf as she rapidly typed her thoughts down on her keyboard. "I'm sorry Iris, I didn't mean to waste your time. I appreciate you looking out for me, especially since you probably wanted to go to the meeting…"

The brown eyed girl chuckled, rubbing the bridge of her nose as she rolled her wheelchair next to Ayeka's. "Eh, don't worry about it. We wheelchair buddies gotta stick together, yeah?"

"Hehe, thank you!" Ayeka replied gratefully, wiping some stray tears from her eyes. "Iris, can I ask you a question?"

"Aye, of course!"

The pink eyed girl hesitated, before relenting and typing her question down. "Do you really think that the mastermind can grant our any desire? I mean, that's impossible, right?" Ayeka paused, for a moment, before continuing. "Is it bad that I feel just a tad bit tempted to see if what this mastermind says is true?"

The Mycologist sighed, smoothing her skirt as she rolled her wheelchair forward a bit, patting her friend on the shoulder. "Of course not. We're all human, which means that deep down, we're flawed and self serving beings. After all, it's why people that are truly selfless like Mother Teresa are so famous. No matter how good a person is, chances are they have at least one selfish desire that they'd do almost anything to have come true. And our captor knows this, too."

Ayeka considered Iris' response, before nodding in agreement. "You're right, as usual. That's part of why I'm so scared, I suppose." She paused, releasing a small yawn and rubbing her eyes. "Ah, I'm getting tired. Iris, will you stay with me for the evening? I'm scared I won't get any sleep otherwise…"

Iris smiled, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Aye, say no more. I think it'll be beneficial to us both."

* * *

**7:01 PM**

**Floor 1**

**Rec Room **

"I doubt this is going to work, but it's certainly worth a try!" Leo mused, eyeing the vent with intrigue.

"Mwhaha, thanks to Corvo, we may be getting out of here sooner than our captor wants us to!" Kagemaru boasted, hoisting open the vent grate. "In the final days before we were knocked unconscious, I discovered that this vent connects to the Director's Office up on the 4th floor! If I can get Corvo up there, we may be able to see who's behind this!"

"Right, that's a fine idea and all, but have you considered how we'll be able to see? All you have is a walkie talkie." The Statistician pointed out, folding his arms over his chest. "Can we get a camera or something?"

"I wouldn't worry about that. In fact, I have a better solution than you having to use your precious bird."

The two turned around in surprise to see Ranze, holding a strange looking machine.

"The hell is that? Looks like a metal crab…" Leo chuckled.

Ranze gave a small smirk. "Well, it's something like that. I constructed this awhile back, in conjunction with Kline and Ikouze. It's a small remote control automation with a camera that syncs a feed up to my Genesis Pad. Thankfully, any tampering done to our pads by the mastermind has not affected that function. Thus, we can use this and you do not have to risk your pets life."

Leo and Kagemaru stared at him in stunned silence for a moment, before the former whistled. "Wow, that's surprisingly generous of you. Are you sure you're the same Ranze that dissed a wheelchair bound girl earlier?"

The Prostheticist visibly winced, clearly bothered. "I… yes, that wasn't my brightest moment, I admit. I plan to apologize first thing tomorrow morning. Regardless, that's not the point now. So, what do you say, bird boy?"

Kagemaru shot him a toothy grin, lowering Corvo away from the vent. "By all means. Better your creation than my friend."

"Very well then. Allow me to demonstrate some of the best that the Ikeru knowledge has to offer!" Ranze boasted, setting the robot into the vent and taking out his Genesis Pad. After a minute of fiddling, he turned to show his two companions how it worked. "As you can see, the camera on it is crystal clear. Now, Kagemaru, simply give me the direction to go in." He instructed, using the controls to guide the robot through the vent.

After a few minutes of instructing and guiding Ranze through the vents, Kagemaru smirked. "Hehe, take a right here, and then we'll be at the Director's Office."

"Huh. I would have expected the mastermind to have taken precautions. How sloppy of them!" Leo chuckled.

Ranze snorted. "Don't celebrate just yet. There's no telling what we'll find in the Director's Office."

As the small robot sauntered forward, slowly approaching the light at the end of the vent, a small beeping became audible, before a small explosion erupted, cutting off the camera feed.

After a small moment of silence, Leo chuckled. "Well, good thing we didn't use the bird, right?"

Before Kagemaru or Ranze could muster a response, the tv mounted on the wall turning on and revealing a clearly annoyed Hoshasenkuma.

"**Seriously, did you lot truly think that would work? Give me a break, I wasn't born yesterday!" **The Kuma growled. "**Consider this a warning, as you technically breached Rule #2. But I'm a very benevolent God, just make sure you don't pull a stunt like that again!"**

The tv then shut off, leaving the trio to stir over what just happened.

"Well, better that dumb robot than my best buddy!" Kagemaru chuckled, watching Ranze sigh and place his head on his hand, and Leo shoot him a look. "What?"

"Not the time for that, buddy." Leo chided, resting a hand on Ranze's shoulder. "He worked hard on that robot."

Ranze slowly stood up, shrugging off Leo's hand. "Thank you, but this is what helpful purpose machines are supposed to serve. Now if you two will excuse me, I'll be retiring for the evening."

The two watched the Prosthetist leave, Kagemaru not seeming to care as he petted Corvo. "Eh, he'll get over it."

Leo frowned with worry, glancing back up at the pitch black monitor. '_I have a feeling he's less worried about the robot, and more about the fact that we're imprisoned here by someone truly intelligent who has covered all their bases…'_


	6. Reboot Announcement

Hey everyone! As I'm sure many of y'all know if you were or are in the Legacy of Hope Discord, this original iteration of the story is cancelled, for a myriad of reasons that I will not get into. But, as again I know a few of you are aware, it's getting rebooted! My friend CelestialSkyDragon is also rebooting his Danganronpa series, and due to this story being tied to Celestial's story HHPA, he's been kind enough to let me integrate my story in, under the new title We Fortunate Few! And I'm rather excited about this, as the game will not be just in the format of a traditional Danganronpa game, but will be part Zero Escape as well! The puzzles in the Nonary Games make the series stand out, adding another layer to the story. So yeah, check out Celestial's stories, and he has a discord now! Check it out! TmZFbsA

So, as for my new story, it should be up on my account at the time of this posting! It will have all the details of the drastically reworked cast (that I now need more submissions for), as well as other notes regarding it. Thanks y'all!


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